Elementary, my dear Naruto
by Dragonwannabe
Summary: How's a guy suppose to romance a girl while on a weird mission with the rest of the team watching his every move? That's the dilemma Naruto faces when he's reunited with Hinata seven weeks after their last harrowing mission together. Sequel to: OBHN.
1. Think, Naruto, think

Elementary, my dear Naruto

I. Think, Naruto, think

"Naruto Unzumaki, are you stalking me?" Tsunade twirled around and confronted him so suddenly Naruto was thrown off balance tripping over his feet as he tried to back up. He caught himself from falling on his face but landed flat on his ass instead.

"Of course not," he denied hotly jumping quickly back to his feet. He tried to pretend nothing had happened, but he couldn't stop involuntarily rubbing his sore backside nor the reddening of his face at being caught out. "I was—ah—just coming to see you."

She placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot on the ground. She stared him down quite easily. She enjoyed having the upper hand with Naruto which his temper inciting her own rarely allowed. For once she'd caught him at an obvious disadvantage—plus he was behaving more subdued than normal. She could guess what that was all about, but she'd enjoy the knowledge much more if he inadvertently revealed it himself.

"I see. You really should follow protocol and make an appointment, Naruto. Everyone else does. _However_, in this case I'll make an exception. I have a little time now, so you might as well come along with me. You and I can have a nice little chat." Turning back in the direction she'd originally been headed, she motioned for him to follow her as she continued down the hallway towards her office.

Now that he'd gotten her attention, Naruto wasn't so sure he wanted it. What did she mean by _a nice little chat_. That sounded ominous. He'd certainly been following her, but he wouldn't go so far as to call it stalking. Stalking implied a sinister motive, and he had nothing sinister in mind as he'd lurked outside all morning following her into the building when she'd finally arrived at work.

All he'd wanted was to ask her a question. Just a simple question that had been preying on his mind for the past week. He just hadn't gotten up the nerve to ask it yet. It was a rather revealing question and he needed to be subtle and nonchalant about it. If he didn't ask it the right way, he knew the Hokage would tease him unmercifully for as long as she could get away with it. He wouldn't willingly give the Fifth that kind of ammunition. She was a tough, old broad and had no scruples about using any piece of information in her possession to make a guy feel about three feet tall—even a guy who knew the worst about her. And he knew some pretty bad stuff about the Fifth.

Of course, he wasn't the only one in on her little secrets. But as far as he knew only Jiraiya, Shizune and he knew about her little gambling problem, her complete and utter inability to win any wager, and the fact that she'd owed a lot of money at one time and had used her considerable powers to avoid paying off her debts. Only the idea that she was a sannin and the Hokage made him respect her authority at all. The real stumbling block was that she hadn't even wanted the job of Hokage at first—and that still really bothered him. He couldn't imagine anyone refusing the job. Wasn't that the dream of every real shinobi?

His only experience with Hokage's was with one of the best. Until Tsunade, Sarutobi, the Third had been Hokage all of Naruto's life. He'd never known the kind of stuff about the Third that he knew about the Fifth. Of course, that hadn't stopped him from treating the Third about the same way he treated the Fifth and all the other adults in his life—with the familiarity of family.

"Sit down, Naruto. Would you like some tea?" Tsuande asked pleasantly gesturing to the nearest comfortable chair.

"Unh?" Why was she being so nice to him? Usually, she just yelled and kicked him out of the room when he was bugging her. Actually, he didn't even have to bug her to get kicked out of the room. She only had to see him to want him immediately out of her sight.

"I'm trying to be a gracious hostess, Naruto. Please, sit down like a polite guest. Let's behave like the adults we are for a change." She sat down behind her desk and waited for Naruto to sit in the chair on the opposite side.

"I never sat down in your office before," he observed as he did just that. It was true. He was always standing in front of her desk awaiting orders or being chewed out. Those weren't the best times to be seated and relaxed.

"I know. Ours has not been a typical Hokage-shinobi relationship. You've picked up far too many of Lord Jiraiya's insubordinate insolence. He's one of the few shinobi left who knew me when so I allow him a little latitude. You, on the other hand, have no good excuse for your usual disrespectful behavior. If I didn't appreciate how talented you are and how much potential you have, I would have demoted you by now. Of course, you wouldn't have far to go since you've only managed to obtain the second ninja level," she observed conversationally.

Naruto flushed darkly at her comments. He wasn't good at this polite stuff. Ordinarily, he would have blown up by now forgetting who and what she was. He didn't know how to revere a position let alone the person holding it. The position of Hokage was important to him, because he knew it garnered general respect and recognition from almost everyone. He longed for that respect and recognition—something that he'd never had from anyone in the village, and thought the only way to achieve it was by becoming Hokage. He'd failed to notice that his own abilities and behavior were garnering some healthy respect and admiration in many quarters. He still thought he needed the title of Hokage to achieve his ambitions.

He never thought he'd say this to her, but she'd made him feel somewhat ashamed of his usual behavior. "I'm sorry. I—ah—"

She held up her hand. "You don't have to say any more. I've forgiven you many times over. You and I met under less than ideal circumstances. I always take that into consideration. I know I only hold this office until you're ready to take over," she said solemnly then winked at him.

"What? Unh?" His mouth gaped open in surprise.

She laughed. "I never thought to see you so tongue-tied, Naruto. Something has certainly mellowed you out. I could hazard a guess, but I don't think you could get any more embarrassed. Let's just get down to business, shall we?"

"Business?"

"That's right. If I hadn't bumped into you, I was planning to summon you to my office sometime today. I have a mission for you."

He groaned. Not another mission so soon. She'd been keeping him hopping for almost two months. He hadn't spent more than two days at a time in Konoha since he'd returned from a long-term mission overseas. He hadn't even had the time to wipe away the dust his room had accumulated in the year he'd been gone. He no longer had a personal life, and that thought had been preying on his mind a lot lately. In fact, it was part of the question he wanted to ask the Hokage—if he got a reasonable opportunity.

"What's the problem? Isn't your bank account swelling nicely with all these missions you've undertaken lately?"

"Sure, but who has time to spend it?" he grumbled.

"Hasn't anyone taught you the virtues of saving? If you're frugal, you can have an early retirement instead of working till you're my age." She winked at him again. Anyone who didn't know her would think they were looking at a woman in her early thirties. But Tsuande was somewhat vain, and had learned the secrets of maintaining a youthful appearance. Her actual age was at least twenty years older.

"No. Mostly I'm stuck with old people who want to spend all my money for me," he retorted darkly thinking of Jiraiya. He couldn't count the number of times Jiraiya had borrowed, wheedled, or outright taken every cent he carried with him. If he didn't know that Jiraiya made tons of money on those books he wrote, he would have thought him a beggar. Of course, he was always wasting his money and Naruto's on liquor and women. Maybe he'd wasted too much and he really was as poor as he seemed. But that wasn't Naruto's problem. He wasn't about to waste any sympathy on the perverted sage if his chosen life style drained his pockets. He completely disapproved of that aspect of his sensei's life.

Tsunade laughed. "Well, I believe that particular problem hasn't returned to the village yet so your money is safe for now." She knew he referred to Jiraiya. He had been on the overseas mission with Naruto, but had chosen to do some traveling on his own before returning home. He'd left Naruto to make his way back to the village by himself which hadn't been the smartest decision he'd ever made. However, Tsunade had foreseen the difficulties of Naruto's homecoming. She had assigned the young kunoichi, Hinata Hyuga to bring Naruto home through the hazards of a new, wealthy and persistent enemy on his trail. The story of their return trip had been an interesting and monetarily rewarding adventure (_See Operation: Bring home Naruto_). Just thinking about it made Tsunade smile.

"He can stay away as long as he wants as far as I'm concerned," Naruto missed her smile as he indulged in his own thoughts about Jiraiya. He was the strangest and best teacher he'd ever had, but he treated Naruto with a careless affection that was dissatisfying to an orphaned boy. He supposed if Jiraiya had ever had any fatherly instincts he would have married and had children by now so he really shouldn't fault him for being something he wasn't—but he did anyway.

It wasn't exactly that Naruto was looking for a father, but he did miss having a stable father figure in his life. There were only two men in his life that he'd felt some of the affection he would have felt for his own father. The Third and Iruka Umuino. He hadn't realized how much the Third had mentored and meant to him until he'd died, but then the Third had been a father to the entire village not just Naruto. Almost every shinobi in the village had grown up solely under the Third's leadership. Everyone had been saddened at his passing.

Iruka was a teacher in the ninja school and mentored many young genin. However he was really too young for the role of father, but he was the closest thing Naruto had ever had to a father in his life. He was the first adult who had shown Naruto any personal interest. Maybe because he was also an orphan, he knew how lonely Naruto was. And despite the fact that they rarely worked together since Naruto had become a chûnin, they still met regularly over a bowl of ramen. He was definitely Naruto's favorite teacher and always would be no matter how interesting Jiraiya was.

Naruto's face was an open book. Tsunade could see the conflicting emotions wipe away his usual cocky grin. "I think you should cut Lord Jiraiya a little slack, Naruto. He's seen practically every friend, relation and teacher die before his time. Is it a wonder he styles himself as a hermit?"

"So have you. So has Kakashi sensei. So has Iruka sensei. I don't see any of them turning their backs on the village," he insisted stubbornly.

"Neither has Lord Jiraiya. He's put himself in danger many times to investigate some of Konoha's most powerful enemies. He just doesn't play well with others."

"Whatever."

She eyed him thoughtfully. "You'll come to appreciate him better as you grow older. But I didn't arrange this meeting to become an advocate for Jiraiya. He's often a thorn in my side, too. The three of us, Jiraiya, Orochimaru and I were a very unwilling team. I really don't know how we managed to work together unless it was the Third's influence. We were all extremely competitive, powerful, and jealous of one another. It's not surprising that each of us became so independent." She stopped and shook her head. As she grew older, she had more and more of these spells of reminiscing on the past. There was no point to it. It only made her melancholy for what might have been.

"What's that got to do with me?" he asked when her gaze drifted off to somewhere across the room, her attention left him, and the silence grew to an uncomfortable length.

"Nothing and everything," she told him cheerfully and focused her attention and gaze back on the bright-haired, blue-eyed young man slouched and scowling in the chair opposite her. For all of his almost 19 years, he still seemed very young. She sometimes forgot what the world looked like to a teenager—even an old one. Impatience, arrogance, and seeming invulnerability were the obstacles they had to overcome. However, all too soon war, hazardous missions or betrayal worn these away.

"Naruto," she continued more serious, "by now a majority of the shinobi from your age group have become jônin. They have exhibited the necessary physical, mental and leadership skills to lead and perform missions on their own."

"That's not my fault. I haven't been here four out of six years since I was 12."

"I'm aware of that. I'm also aware that everyone develops at his or her own pace. However, I'd like to improve that pace if I can."

"Yeah, how?"

"You've proven that you have the physical skills necessary to be a jônin, but I want to develop your mental and leadership abilities. I'd like you to focus on analytical thinking and strategy."

"Unh?"

"Think, Naruto. I want you to learn to think. Thinking's an important part of being a Hokage, you know. I don't go missions any more. I have to be able to assign the best people available for every mission."

He flushed. "I can think. I've come up with some good attack plans on plenty of missions."

"Yes, you have, but you've done this more on instinct and with yourself as the focus. I want you to learn to think of the team. I want you to be able to analyze a situation and use the best abilities of the entire team, not just your own. I know how tempting it is to take on every danger yourself, but as the leader of a team you don't have that luxury."

"I don't do that!" he protested.

"You forget, I read all the reports of missions. I've seen how difficult it is for you sometimes to follow the direction of your team leader. I know you've come a long way. The mission you and Hinata had together demonstrated just how much you've matured, but I feel you still have a lot to learn."

At the mention of Hinata, he flushed. She was what he had come to ask the Hokage about. She'd been gone for almost a month recuperating from the injuries she'd suffered on their mission together. He wanted to know when she was coming home, but now wasn't exactly the time to ask. He had to wait for a better opening. He didn't want the Hokage to get the wrong idea—or actually the right idea about why he wanted to know. He couldn't handle the teasing.

"So I have to learn to be a leader. How do I do that?"

"I want you to observe one of the best analytical thinkers and strategists, I've seen in a long time lead you in a mission. I want you to ask questions and understand reasons for decisions made, but not to needlessly question decisions. I want you to take notes if you have to, but I want you to start using your head not your heart when handling difficult problems."

"Okay. You want me to think," he agreed half-heartedly. He didn't see anything wrong with the way he thought. He'd been on a ton of successful missions with everything going just fine.

"Not just you. There are two other chûnin from your age group who need some special training, too. The shinobi from your age group have all shown remarkable talent and ability. I don't see any reason you all shouldn't be jônin. In fact, I'd like to see the last of you make jônin in the next year."

"Yeah? Who besides me?" He straightened up. It didn't sound like he was being deliberately singled out after all.

"You'll find that out tomorrow when you meet your new team for your mission."

"Who's the leader?"

"I'm going to keep that as a surprise for tomorrow, too." She gave him a teasing smile.

He frowned. "That's mean. Why can't you tell me now?"

"Don't spoil my fun, Naruto. You can wait until tomorrow. Be ready to meet the group at the North gate at eight a.m."

"I'm going to get mad, aren't I?" he asked shrewdly.

"Mad? I don't think that's the right word. But you do tend to get a little over excited when you aren't happy about something."

"Well, then what's the mission?"

"I'll let your leader explain that to you as well. It's not a typical mission for you. It's more of a puzzle you'll need to solve than a fight to win."

"I don't get it. Why all the mystery?"

She grinned at him. "That's it precisely. It's a mystery for you to solve. I hope it turns out to be an interesting one. I'd hate for you to travel all that way for nothing."

"All that way? Where exactly are we going? Come on, you can at least tell me that?" he asked in a wheedling tone.

She shook her head smiling. "No, I don't think so. Let's make this a mystery all the way around."

"Can I guess?"

"No. That's a pointless waste of time. I don't intend to give you any clues."

"Come on. Give me a few hints at least."

"It wouldn't do you any good. You'll just have to wait until tomorrow."

"You really are a mean, old lady!"

"And don't you forget it, Naruto Uzumaki. Now go away. I've got better things to do."

"What happened to being a polite hostess? What happened to tea?" he demanded.

"Too late. You should have taken me up on that when I asked. I'm no longer in the mood to be polite. Go away before I get mad."

Naruto stood up and sauntered to the door grumbling under his breath. "How come she's allowed to be rude, but I can't be? Just 'cause she's the Hokage doesn't mean she can treat me like this."

"Yes, it does," she answered hearing everything he'd said not quite under his breath. "Now get out!" she ended with a roar.

He left pretty quickly after that. Even he knew when he'd outstayed his welcome.

* * *

He was late.

How could he be late? He was never late. Was Kakashi's bad habit finally wearing off on him after being a member of team Kakashi for so many years? If Kakashi were going to be on this mission, he might get away with it mainly because Kakashi would probably be even later, but he didn't think anyone else would tolerate it. And he needed to make a good impression on his team leader if he wanted to get the Fifth off his back. Despite that off-handed remark about his talent and potential, she really didn't appreciate him.

He didn't understand what she was talking about. He could think. He did it all the time. He'd had plenty of successful missions lately. That should count for something. He wasn't the same goofball he'd been as a genin. He'd grown up considerably since then. He could think as well as anybody in this age group—Kiba, Shino, Lee—anybody. Who the hell was this great analytical mind—this great strategist the Fifth had talked about anyway? Had he ever been on a team with the guy before?

Maybe he'd overslept because he'd been sleeplessly puzzling out who that guy could be too long last night. He'd gone over every shinobi he knew. He hadn't teamed with all of them. He'd never been on a team with Asuma sensei, or Kurenai sensei, or Ibiki sensei just to name a few. He tried to remember if he'd heard anything special about them, but nothing came to mind.

He didn't have the time or patience to puzzle it out anymore. He was only minutes away from finding out first hand who this mystery man was. He ran full out after locking his door to the North gate. He only stopped to catch his breath when he reached the checkpoint manned by Kotetsu and Izumo.

"Hey, Naruto, you're late. The Fifth said your team would be heading out at eight am."

"I know. I know. Where _is_ my team? I seem to be the only one here."

"I think they got tired of pacing and waiting for you. They all went outside the gate a little while ago."

"No, wait a minute. Here comes your team leader now."

Naruto had been leaning over, hands on his knees, facing the ground, while he caught his breath, but after Izumo spoke he quickly raised his head.

"Are you going to be this troublesome the entire mission, Naruto?" Shikamaru shook his head at the last member of his team to arrive. "We've been waiting for you forty minutes."

Naruto pointed at him in shock. "Shikamaru!? You're the team leader? You're the great analytical thinker and strategist?"

Shikamaru scratched the back of his head. "You don't need to flatter me. I'll let your unpunctuality slide this time, but don't let it happen again."

"I'm not flattering you!" he retorted. "I never said that. That's what Granny Tsunade said."

Shikamaru shrugged. "Well, if the Fifth said it, it must be so."

"I don't believe this! What can I learn from you? You're the laziest shinobi from our class," he said angrily. Okay, so Shikamaru made chûnin first. That didn't mean he was that much better a shinobi. Was the Fifth just teasing him all this time?

"I never noticed you working very hard back in school either, Naruto. Believe me, if I could avoid this mission I would. You're the most troublesome shinobi in all of Konoha. If I'd been allowed to pick my own team you wouldn't be on this mission, but the Fifth gave me no choice."

"Hey, I wouldn't be here if I had a choice either," he said hotly.

"Good. We understand each other. Just don't live up to your reputation."

"My reputation's just fine. You just live up to yours."

"No problem."

"I can't believe you're the team leader. Who else is on this training mission?" How could someone he used to get in trouble with have surpassed him so significantly? Shikamaru had been the first chûnin in their class, but only because the exams had been terminated when the village had been attacked. But he was the second of that year's group to make jônin. How did he get to be so much better than Naruto?

"The other two are just outside the gate sitting on a log waiting for your sorry ass." Shikamaru put his hands in his pockets and sauntered towards the gate.

Naruto kicked at the walkway as he followed. No wonder the Fifth wanted to keep this a surprise. He sure would have made a stink when he found out. He had the most difficulty following the leadership of those shinobi who had been genin the same time he was. He resented that most of them had already surpassed him. At the time he'd felt his greatest rival was Sasuke. How could he have guessed that Sasuke would be the least of his competition?

Just as he approached the gate Chouji stepped around the opening and stopped to wait for them.

"Chouji's on this mission, too?" That was just great. Chouji and Skikamaru were best friends. They could gang up and force him to follow anything they wanted. Now he felt at an even greater disadvantage. What was the Fifth thinking when she set this up? Did she hate him this much?

"That's right. Chouji needs some expert training, too."

Just as Naruto opened his mouth to make some disgruntled crack, their last team member came out from behind Chouji.

"Hi," Hinata said welcoming him with a shy smile. That was the only evidence she gave of her nervousness at meeting Naruto after a seven weeks absence while she recovered from wounds received on the mission they'd shared. She kept her head up and her hands loosely at her side. She'd been making a great effort to control her usual revealing gestures of timidity. She wanted to retain the feeling of confidence and power she'd experienced on that mission. And she was succeeding. Even her father was beginning to treat her differently.

"Hinata!" Naruto greeted her with a huge grin. "You're back! You're okay now?" All of his dissatisfaction with the mission faded away completely when he saw her. The Fifth was forgiven. He had absolutely no problem with this mission now.


	2. A sweet reunion

Elementary, my dear Naruto

II. A sweet reunion

"Come on. Let's go. We've wasted enough time," Shikamaru impatiently interrupted the hesitant greeting between Naruto and Hinata.

"Okay, okay. Show us the way, oh great leader," Naruto told him agreeably trying to avoid any more recriminations for their tardy departure.

Naruto was no longer in an argumentative mood nor did he feel any more antagonism towards Shikamaru as team leader. His temper was always quick to come and quick to go. Besides he'd worked with Shikamaru often enough since he'd become a chûnin to realize what an effective leader he was. He could acknowledge internally if not externally that Shikamaru really could think his team's way out of most tight situations. He hadn't always agreed (sometimes quite vocally) with his decisions, but they'd always worked out in the end. Maybe there actually was something in the Fifth's view of Naruto's analytical skills.

Anyway, it couldn't hurt to pay more attention to Shikamaru's decision-making abilities. It was on the same path as his goal to be the Hokage one day. He'd just be sure not too give Shikamaru a swelled head in the process. He simply needed to understand his reasoning without asking for explanations. That shouldn't be too difficult. After all, he had a brain. He could think too, and he'd prove it.

He waited for Shikamaru to lead off with Choji falling in beside him so he could walk next to Hinata. He heard Choji say, "I'm hungry. When are we stopping for lunch?" before he turned his full attention back to Hinata.

He'd forgotten all of his curiosity about the mission. That was of secondary importance to him just now. His main focus was on Hinata. He had so many questions like: How had she spent the last month?; How was she feeling?; and maybe What did she think about him since their mission together? He was so full of questions for her he didn't know where to begin—so he didn't.

"How have you been, Naruto?" she finally asked him as the silence grew too long between them. She felt some awkwardness, but she was so glad to see him again that she ignored it. If he wanted to forget that she'd worked undercover as his girlfriend and he'd kissed her a few times—in the line of duty, of course—she'd pretend to forget, too. She didn't want him to avoid her. She just wasn't willing to go back to square one in their relationship—the square where she barely spoke to him, ducked her head when he looked at her, avoided eye contact completely while nervously and distractingly played with her hands. If she could have no other relationship with him than as a fellow shinobi and teammate, she'd accept that as long as it was on a more equal footing. She no longer wanted to hang about on the fringes of his attention.

He glanced at her in surprise. What an idiot he was! That's what he should be asking. "Nothing's wrong with me. I wasn't the one poisoned and unconscious for three weeks. The important question is—how are you? Are you fully recovered? Should you even be on a mission yet? Didn't you just get back from recuperating?"

She laughed with pleasure at the onslaught of questions. "I'm fine. I've been fine for a while, but the Fifth insisted I take off an entire month. I wanted to come back much sooner. I'm more than ready for a mission."

"Where did you go? What did you do for a whole month?" The Fifth would never tell him exactly where she was. Maybe she'd been afraid that he'd follow Hinata to find out for himself just how she was recuperating. He might have done just that. He didn't have a lot of patience. He could never settle for the _wait and see_ or _it's none of your business _answers when he thought otherwise.

"I was sent to a seaside resort. Basically, I watched the tide come in and out. It was _very_ boring," she explained.

"I haven't seen you for so long. They wouldn't let me visit you in the hospital. Granny Tsunade kept telling me you were going to be fine, but I wasn't sure I believed her. I was really worried about you, Hinata. I didn't realize how small and well—ah—slight you were—not until I saw you so pale and lifeless."

Those memories still gave him bad dreams that had him startling awake in a scared sweat in the middle of the night. Before that day his bad dreams had always consisted of the fight he'd had with Gaara of the Village Hidden in Sand during the chûnin exams when he was 12 years old. He'd always wake up seeing Sakura unconscious and pinned to a tree while Sasuke struggled helpless against the curse mark sapping his strength and will. He remembered how scared he'd felt before he'd summoned Gama Bunta after none of his jutsus had had any effect on Shukaku, the raccoon demon inside Gaara. He'd never wanted to see his friends helpless and threatened again. He'd always fought his hardest so he wouldn't have to, but even that episode hadn't been as painful as watching Hinata's lifeless body being kicked viciously across a forest clearing while he could do nothing. No matter what the Hokage said about learning to make the tough decisions as a team leader needed to do, and not throwing himself alone at every danger, he would never make a decision that would endanger Hinata's life. He never wanted to see her so hurt again.

She blushed. His concern was music to her ears. She'd had trouble believing the Fifth herself, when she was told he'd been worried. It had been nice to dream about, but the reality was even nicer. "I don't remember much of anything after I lost consciousness until I awoke in the hospital three weeks later. Although, I sort of remember you calling my name, but that's it. I only learned what really happened after the Hokage allowed me to read your report. You were very flattering in what you said about me, Naruto. I didn't even recognize myself."

"I only told the truth. You were amazing. And you took good care of me on that mission. I wouldn't have gotten home as easily without you," he told her staunchly.

She wanted to duck her head shyly at his praise, but she didn't. She held her head erect—stiffly because it still didn't come naturally, but high nonetheless. However, she couldn't look at him except out of the corner of her eyes—not yet—and she hadn't learned how to control the blush that made her porcelain pale cheeks rosy red. "But you were left to fight that last fight alone. It'd been my job to protect you. I really feel like I failed in my mission in the end."

"No way! You were no match against that last guy, Hinata—not after the way you fought off those ninja with the needle barrage. That shugo hake rokujuu yon shou of yours is awesome," he said admiringly.

"Thank you, but it's no match for your tajuu kage bunshin no jutsu."

He grinned. "I don't know about that. You and Neji fight very similarly and he nearly got me back when I was 12. If he hadn't underrated me, he would definitely have beaten me."

"I wish I'd seen that fight. I had to rely on Kurenai sensei to tell me the details. I hadn't yet recovered from my own fight with Neji."

"I really wanted you to see it. I defeated him as much for you as for me. You know that don't you? I hated the way he tried to psyche you out during your match together. For somebody who was supposed to protect the main branch of the family, he really wanted to see you fail miserably." Naruto had told her this before, but he really wanted her to know that he would fight anyone for her. Back then it had been mostly the reflex of wanting to defend the weak against the strong, but now it was much more personal.

"He's different now. You know that. I think your fight changed him. Since then he's assisted me in developing my own version of the Hyuga fighting style. But I still couldn't help you when it really counted. That man who had wanted to kill you—could actually have done so—and I was helpless to prevent him." Hinata still couldn't forgive herself for her failure. Why hadn't she seen him in the trees? Her blood limit should have prepared them for his attack. She'd simply relaxed too soon after the four ninja were defeated. She hadn't anticipated that the last enemy was connected to the four. She hadn't been warned about that. That might be the biggest problem she needed to overcome on this mission—making assumptions.

Naruto shook his head. "Just forget about it, Hinata. In his own way that guy was on the same level as Jiraiya sensei. If he'd actually been a ninja with ninjutsu and genjutsu, neither one of us would have had a chance. He was a real nasty, piece of work. He'd been responsible for kidnappings and murders for years in his own country. You saw how much reward money we earned by capturing him? His one goal had been to kill me. He wasn't about to let anyone or anything get in the way of that. If only I'd known about him before I'd left that country after my mission was completed then I would have been better prepared to deal with him and you wouldn't have gotten hurt at all. I'd just been so eager to get back home I hadn't waited to learn anything else about the guys I'd taken down while protecting my client. They'd told me the job was complete, and I believed them no questions asked," he said bitterly. Even Jiraiya hadn't asked any questions. They'd both been glad to end that particular mission. It had been too long and too far away from home. He certainly never wanted to accept that kind of mission again—no matter how good the remuneration.

"You weren't to blame either, Naruto. I was lucky to have survived that poison. The Hokage said it was a very rare venom found in a particular snake from that guy's country. She was only able to make more of the antidote, because of the drop left in the glass vial Tsubaki had given me. She said my experience had provided valuable medical knowledge for the village." She gave a little shrug at that last piece of information. She hadn't found it particularly comforting at the time, but it was just like the Fifth to add even the smallest positive spin to mitigate a failure. Eventually while she'd been recuperating everything positive the Fifth told her about the outcome of her mission had made her feel better. Overall, the mission had been an outstanding success. She had to remember that and stop beating herself up over what she perceived as a personal failure.

"Maybe it was luck and maybe it's because you're a nice person. Who else would have listened so sympathetically to a ghost?" He grinned at her surprise. "I read your part of the mission's report, too. I was ready to write off the entire thing as a shared delusion until I read your report. That antidote had been real so the ghost must have been, too."

It had been very lucky that they'd camped one night on the grounds of a ruined shrine of Amaterasu Ōmikami. Hinata had dreamed of a ghost priestess named Tsubaki—at least she'd thought it was only a dream. The ghost had warned her of the enemies they'd face and given her a glass vial containing the antidote to the poison the worst of Naruto's enemies would eventually shoot into her neck with a dart. She hadn't believed it to be any more than a dream until she'd remembered the vial just before the dart had hit her. It had been very real, and had saved her life. She didn't know if anyone but Naruto would believe her, but she'd reported the incident factually when she'd been able to debrief. It would only be read by those with the authority to do so. She didn't have to worry that people would think she was crazy for talking to ghosts. Stranger things have been know to happen everyday.

"Tsubaki," Hinata said softly. There was something she'd promised to do for Tsubaki if she ever had the opportunity. That something had been to find out what might have become of her warrior lover, Uryu Fujishima. If the antidote had been real than Tsubaki's story had been real. Hinata fully intended to keep her promise when she had an opportunity. She wanted to repay her debt and set Tsubaki's spirit free.

"I owe that ghost for saving your life. If there's ever anything I can do just let me know, Hinata. I'll do it gladly."

"I will," she promised. "I'd like to go back to that shrine one day."

"I'll go with you," he said determinedly.

"You don't have to," she protested faintly, but she really would like to have him along.

"I want to. Maybe next time she'll talk to me, too. I've never talked to a ghost before."

"It's really no different than talking to a living person except that it was in a dream. Everything in a dream is a little surreal. I don't think talking to a ghost when you're awake would seem so normal. In fact, I think it would be a bit eerie if not altogether frightening."

"I guess so, but I'd like to find out for myself. You'll invite me along, won't you?"

"If you like, but it could be awhile. We've at least got this mission to complete."

"Yeah, that's right. What do you know about this mission anyway? Granny Tsunade wouldn't tell me anything, and she seemed to think that was funny," he said darkly. She often found a lot of things amusing in Naruto's presence that he just didn't get.

"She really wouldn't tell me anything either." Hinata recalled the meeting she'd had with the Fifth.

_"I'm glad to see you're so much improved, Hinata. I wasn't worried, but I wasn't certain a month would be enough recovery time," Tsunade had greeted her warmly._

_"I'm fine. I was growing bored just sitting by the ocean watching the waves lap at the beach," she admitted. _

_"Oh, how I envy you. I'd love to have nothing better to do than sit on the beach drinking something fruity and alcoholic while watching half-clothed young men frolicking in the waves," she said with an extravagant sigh._

_"It wasn't like that at all. Hardly anyone else was there. The water was too cold this time of year to spend much time bathing in it. I really only got my feet wet a few times."_

_"It still sounds idyllic to me. But if you were bored then you must be glad to be back."_

_"I am. I was wondering when you'd put me back to work." Actually that was the least of her concerns. She was mostly wondering where Naruto was. She hadn't seen him since she'd lost consciousness on their mission together. She also hadn't seen him around anywhere since she'd arrived back at Konoha two days ago—and she had been looking everywhere she could think of._

_"As a matter of fact, I have a mission designed exactly for you. It came in yesterday and I've been puzzling on who to send. I was extremely impressed by your leadership abilities on your last mission, Hinata. I'd like to see you become a jônin very soon. In order to accelerate that process, I'd like you to work on your analytical thinking and deductive reasoning."_

_"If you think I'm lacking in that area, I'd like that, too. I've been feeling much more confident in my abilities lately."_

_"As well you should. This mission will be a little different than any you've undertaken before. It involves more thinking than fighting. I believe you should do well on this sort of mission."_

_"I appreciate your faith in me, ma'am."_

_Tsunade smiled at her. "You haven't disappointed me yet."_

_"What will this mission involve?"_

"_I don't want you to have any preconceptions, so I won't tell you any more now. That will be the prerogative of your team leader, Shikamaru Nara."_

_"Shikamaru? Really? I've never been on a mission with him, but Kiba and Shino like him. Who else will be on the team?"_

_"There are three of you who are eminently capable of achieving jônin rank. I think this mission will help you all along those lines."_

_Hinata's heart began to beat faster. There was one chûnin she'd really like to see on this mission with her. She wondered if the Fifth had him in mind. She didn't have long to wait for the answer._

_"Choji Akimichi will be with you. And—" Tsunade paused and gave Hinata a sly smile. "Naruto Uzumaki will be your other teammate. He just got back from his last mission this morning. I'll give him a day to relax then you all can set off on this new mission."_

_That was all Hinata needed to hear about the mission at that time. She really didn't care what it was all about as long as Naruto would be there._

"I wonder when Shikamaru will tell us anything?" Naruto looked up ahead of them. He'd allowed a good distance to span between Shikamaru and Choji, and he and Hinata. He didn't want them overhearing anything he had to say to her. If Shikamaru was such a great thinker, he might infer more from the conversation than Naruto wanted him to know. Eventually he'd suss out Naruto's interest in Hinata, but he'd rather it was later than sooner.

"Should we ask him?"

"Naw. Let's not nag him. He'll let us know in his own good time." In reality, Naruto just didn't want to spoil this time with Hinata. He might not have much alone time with her on this mission. He needed to squeeze in as much quality time as he could with her.

Hinata looked at him in surprise. "Naruto, that doesn't sound at all like you."

He grinned at her. "You mean because I'm usually loud and impatient?"

"I would never say anything that rude to you, but I might have thought impatient," she confessed.

"Well, I can admit it. I can be loud. I can be impatient. I have a short temper. I don't always listen to authority. I can be oblivious to my surroundings. Have I missed anything?"

She giggled. "Naruto, I guess you're not perfect. But who is? I have my faults too."

"Not as many as I do. Compared to me you're practically perfect."

"That's not true. I'm awkward. I'm shy—"

"Stop!" He put his hands over his ears. "I don't want to hear anymore. That's totally untrue. You forget I saw you perform your Divine Protection. That is the most graceful ninjutsu I've ever seen—so don't tell me you're awkward."

It took so little for him to have her blushing. "What about shy?"

"You used to be shy. I've seen you do some pretty bold things lately."

"What things?"

"You really want to know? Okay. I don't even have to think about it. Number one, I witnessed first hand how you came up to a guy you'd hardly talked to before and asked him to pretend you were his girlfriend."

"That wasn't my idea. That was the Hokage's." Although she only admit it to herself—she'd loved the idea.

"You carried it out without the Hokage's help—quite convincingly, I might add. A shy shinobi couldn't have done that."

"Please, Naruto, no more about that part of the mission. You may think me bold, but I can still be easily embarrassed."

"Okay. How about something unembarrassing? You can't tell me it isn't incredibly bold to talk to a ghost."

"That's different," she temporized.

"Yeah, but I think anyone else would have freaked out even in a dream like that. It was a dream that seemed real. That didn't faze you at all. I think you would have talked with that ghost in or out of a dream. That's the sort of person you are," he insisted. He didn't know how to come out with '_I like you_,' so he danced around it hoping she'd get the message. It was too early in this idea of a new relationship between them to say anything more definite. To him '_I like you_' meant quite a lot. That's why he was having so much trouble actually saying it.

"I think _you_ would have talked to her, Naruto. That's the kind of person you are, too." She decided it was time to turn the tables on him, before she got a fever from so much blushing.

"So you think I'm a nice guy?" His tone was light, but the question was very very important to him—or rather the answer.

"Yes, I do. I always have."

"Not always. Nobody liked me when I first started ninja training—hell, nobody liked me before that." He could remember how children and adults would stare, avoid him, and talk about him behind his back. He'd never understood it when he was little, but it had hurt a lot. When he did find out why, he still didn't understand why he should be shunned for something that wasn't his fault. He would never treat anyone like that—ever.

"I always liked you, Naruto," she told him in a soft voice.

Naruto stared at her with his mouth agape. He felt so good by what she'd just said that he could burst. Unfortunately, in his long shocked pause, he lost the moment to reciprocate. Before he could reattach his brain to his tongue, he was brought back to reality by Choji yelling back at them, "If you guys don't get a move on we'll never find a place to eat lunch."


	3. What mission?

Elementary, my dear Naruto

III. What mission?

Damn that Choji! Ordinarily Naruto would have been voicing the same concerns about his next meal. The only thing he and Choji usually disagreed on was whether to eat ramen or barbeque, but this time he found Choji's obsession with food irritating. Hell, the guy was already finishing off a bag of snacks—how could he be thinking about lunch already? Why didn't he just bother Shikamaru about it instead of interrupting Naruto's important conversation with Hinata? Damn that Choji!

After that little spur to speed them on, Naruto wasn't allowed any more semi-private moments with Hinata that day. Choji wouldn't let them lag behind as much as a meter before prodding them onward. He kept them all on a stringent march while he anticipated lunch at the next inn or roadside stand on their way North. Shikamaru seemed to have no problem with Choji dictating their pace. He just shrugged and moved faster so Naruto didn't try to argue bout it. He just gave Hinata a rueful smile as they hurried closer to their teammates. Besides Naruto had plenty of things to think about while he waited for another opportunity to talk alone with her.

Hinata liked him.

She said she always liked him.

He tried to remember Hinata before ninja school, but had no memory of her at all. Since she'd been the heir to one of Konoha's great families, it was probable he'd never met her until they were in class together. He'd had no friends at all until he'd gone to school. He couldn't even remember who'd taken care of him until he was of school age. Someone had seen to it that he had food. Someone had seen to it that he had clothes. Someone had kept his room cleaned. But as far as he could remember, it was no one who interacted with him. He'd eaten when he wanted. He'd gone to bed when he wanted. He'd spent his allowance on anything he wanted. No one had been around to correct him. He'd been alone most of his life.

In school the only girl who'd caught his attention had been Sakura Haruno. She was smart, cute, and popular. He could say the same for Ino Yamanaka, but she didn't have Sakura's flair. Wanting attention himself Naruto had always often been attracted to those who attracted attention. That was definitely Sakura. She wouldn't go overlooked even in a crowd.

However, the way Sakura garnered attention and the way he did were completely different. Class clown and troublemaker weren't generally admired traits. As far as he'd ever been able to tell none of the girls paid any particular attention to him. From the beginning they were all gaga over Sasuke. At first, he hadn't cared, but as he grew older and girls became more interesting, he'd wanted Sakura to notice him. Well, he'd gotten his wish, but she hadn't noticed him the way he'd wanted. She'd found him an annoying, irritating goofball that only got in the way of her pursuit of Sasuke. Even as they grew older, she never saw him in a romantic role. She continued to treat him like an annoying little brother at worst, and a tolerable teammate at best.

Even back before they were genin, Hinata had never really made an impression on him. Maybe it was because of her shyness. She'd never look him in the eye. She barely said two words to him. She'd duck her head and nervously fiddle with her hands whenever he glanced her way. It wasn't that he'd disliked her or anything. He just hadn't the patience or attention span to wait for her to finish a sentence. So he assumed she didn't like him and left it at that.

But he remembered some things from the past that looked entirely different now.

After his fight with Kiba during the chûnin exams, she'd offered him some ointment for his cuts even though Kiba was her teammate. He'd thought that a little weird, but it was actually the first time he'd paid her more than a second's notice.

During her fight with Neji as part of the same exams, she'd used his expression, '_That's my shinobi way, too_. _I never go back on my word_,' and as he'd cheered her on, he thought she'd been looking at him when she'd said it. That was the first time he'd watched her for any significant amount of time. He'd been impressed by her courage and perseverance, and he'd been outraged at the way her cousin had treated her in that match. When it was over, he'd dipped his fingers in her blood and swore vengeance for how Neji had treated her. Of course that had been mostly the heat of the moment speaking. He hadn't been feeling as confident as the match approached.

But when he'd met her on the way to his own fight with Neji, she'd offered him the encouragement he'd badly needed before that match. He'd never forgotten that. She'd said his cheering for her had made her feel stronger and able to like herself a little more. She'd said he was inspiring to watch and an incredibly strong person with the guts to keep fighting despite his mistakes. She'd called him a _proud failure_. All really encouraging things that had made him feel good—and what did he do for her in return? He cringed to remember that he'd called her a _weirdo, dark and plain and timid_. That had been really nice and sensitive of him after her great encouragement. But at least he'd told her he liked her—of course, not her specifically. He'd actually said _folks like her_. What an idiot he was!

If only he'd paid more attention to her back then instead of treating her like—like just anybody. How could she really like him after he'd been so oblivious and insensitive? Maybe he was over thinking this. Maybe, when she said _like_ she didn't mean boyfriend _like_ but friend _like_. What if that was what she'd been telling him?

Damn that Choji! Why couldn't he have given Naruto a little more time to talk to Hinata so he could have clarified what she meant? Now when would he have the chance? It wasn't something he could just start talking about cold. He couldn't just say '_Hey, Hinata, what did you mean when you said you always liked me_?' That would really put her on the spot, and he didn't know if he was ready to discover the truth that bluntly. He'd faced rejection all his life, but that didn't mean he wanted to set himself up to face potential rejection this important. He needed to find out what she meant more subtly. But how? Subtly wasn't his strong suit.

Somehow he needed some more private or semi-private time with Hinata so he could veer the conversation back to where they'd left off. Would this mission allow for them to pair off? Would he be able to maneuver Shikamaru into pairing him with Hinata without giving rise to any prurient speculation?—or at any rate, distract Shikamaru's attention from the two of them for as long as possible? Those were all questions that kept Naruto's fertile brain occupied on their way to the nearest inn for lunch. Even Tsunade would have been impressed at his ability to scheme.

The only thoughts he spared for the mission were ones that would somehow put Hinata and him alone together. Otherwise, he didn't give it another thought. It had just become an excuse to be with Hinata and nothing more. He was so busy thinking about his personal strategy that if anyone had suddenly asked he would have stared at them blankly and said '_What mission?_'

* * *

At lunch Choji had to settle for pork in almost every way except barbeque.

The inn they'd finally reached in the early afternoon only had only pork recipes: pork gyoza, tonjiru, pork kushiage and harumaki to name only a few. However, by that time, Choji wasn't in the mood to be too picky. He had an order of everything.

After they'd all taken the edge off their hunger, Shikamaru looked speculatively at Naruto and Hinata, and said, "I'm surprised the two of you haven't asked me yet about our mission."

They exchanged guilty looks before Naruto answered, "Granny Tsunade had been so cagey about it, I figured you'd tell us when you needed to."

"Wow, Naruto, that's really mature of you. I'm impressed."

Naruto flushed at the sarcasm. "Hey, I can be mature when I want to."

"He really did say that to me when we were wondering about it earlier," Hinata hastily came to Naruto's defense.

"So you both decided to just wait and see?"

They nodded their heads.

"You weren't curious at all?"

"Of course we were curious. Hinata told you we'd wondered about it." He flushed remembering just how little they'd wondered.

"But not enough to ask me for even a little hint?" Shikamaru persisted especially noting Naruto's guilty expression and reddened face.

"You and Choji were talking. We didn't want to butt into a private conversation," Naruto gave a hasty and spurious explanation.

"Yeah, right, our private conversation," he eyed them thoughtfully. "Hey, weren't you two on a mission together recently?"

"Not that recent. Didn't the Hokage tell you about that? She had to tell you why Hinata's been out of commission for a while, didn't she? Don't you have to know that kind of thing as team leader?"

He shrugged. "She may have mentioned something about it. You're okay now, aren't you, Hinata?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

"This mission shouldn't involve a lot of fighting, but you never can tell. If the going gets rough and you think you aren't up to it, just let me know, okay?"

"I will, but I really am fine now."

He nodded his head and took a bite of his harumaki.

"So what's this mission all about?" Naruto asked when it looked like Shikamaru wasn't going to say any more. It was the question he felt Shikamaru expected of him.

"Well, I don't know that much myself, but I can't tell you anything here. Someone might overhear us. I'll tell you about it when we camp tonight."

"You told Choji, though, didn't you?" Naruto accused.

Shikamaru shook his head. "Nope. He knows exactly what you know—nothing. I won't play favorites on this mission. I was given explicit instructions to teach you all the same thing in the same way. That's what I intend to do."

"Yeah, I know that much. You're going to teach us how to think."

"That about sums it up."

"I don't think any of us has any trouble thinking," Naruto grumbled.

"Neither do I," Shikamaru said calmly then took another bite of his hakumaki.

"What?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "It's the Fifth's idea not mine."

"So what is her idea exactly?"

He leaned back and slung his left arm over the back of his chair. "Basically, I'm going to do my best to teach you guys how my mind works in a situation that requires brains not brawn."

"That sounds really boring."

"Think about it from my side—I've got to slow down my thinking so you guys can catch up. That's even more boring."

Choji snorted a laugh. "I'm not gonna do that hand thing you do, Shikamaru. I do my best thinking when I'm eating."

He grinned at Choji. "Don't worry. You can do your hand to mouth thing if that makes you feel more comfortable. I'll make sure there's plenty of brain food for you to do your best thinking."

"I do my best thinking in a hot springs. What are you gonna do about that, Shikamaru?" Naruto challenged.

"Pour hot water over your head."

Even Hinata giggled at that.

"Ha, ha, very funny. I guess you've got all the answers."

"So they tell me. Hey, I'm not trying to make this difficult for you, Naruto. I told the Fifth not everyone needs to think the way I do. I've been on missions with you and Choji. I've seen what you can do. I've seen Hinata train and fight. I don't see why this mission is necessary for you guys, and I made no bones about it. I told the Fifth that she needs to chill about your jônin progress."

"What did she have to say to that?" Hinata asked curiously. She couldn't imagine saying such a thing to the Hokage.

"She told me to do what I'm told or else." He shrugged again.

"Yeah, that sounds like her. I bet she doesn't yell at you like she does me."

"I don't try her patience the way you do, Naruto. But she's not always happy after talking to me either. You know, she's got really angry eyes. That can be pretty scary."

"Tell me about it," Naruto agreed.

"I've seen you with her, Naruto. You can get away with a lot more than I can. Hell, I wouldn't dare call her _Granny_ to her face."

"She doesn't look anything like a granny," Hinata said.

"Nobody but Naruto would or could say that," Choji agreed.

"But she could be. She's old enough to be one," he argued.

"You know, the oldest person I ever knew was the Third. He really looked old. The Fifth looks nothing like that."

"The Third _was_ old, and a grandfather. He would have retired a long time ago if the Fourth hadn't died."

"Yeah, Hokage's don't usually seem to last that long."

They took a somber moment to dwell on the passing of the Third six years earlier. They all knew the histories of the previous Hokage's. They'd all lived and died through times of war. The ninja life was a hazardous one, but each of them in their own way found it a noble and exciting calling.

"I can't wait to see my face on the mountain behind the village." Naruto's thoughts didn't dwell on sad themes for long.

"You think you're gonna be Hokage?" Choji asked with a laugh.

"That's right. I'm aiming to be the Sixth—hey, it's not that funny."

"I think Naruto would make a great Hokage," Hinata defended staunchly.

"Fine by me. I don't want the job," Shikamaru said.

"You don't? Why not?"

"Too much work and worry," Choji answered for him. "I don't want it either. Shikamaru and I are going to be like our dads—just average ninja assigned to protect the village."

"Is that really all you want to be, Shikamaru? You, the great analytical thinker and strategist?"

Shikamaru sighed. "How troublesome it is to have a brain. I don't think the Fifth is going to let me settle back into average. If I'm not careful I'll have some lofty position I don't want like Konoha Military Strategist. You guys better learn something from this mission so I don't stand out so much."

"Sure, just show me how," Naruto agreed. He wouldn't mind a nice title and lofty position before he became Hokage. He wanted to be anything but average.

"Okay. Let's finish up here and hit the road. We've still got a long way to go," Shikamaru ordered, and they settled down to polishing off their lunch.

* * *

They camped off road towards sunset. Instead of eating the rations they'd brought, they'd had the forethought (thanks to Choji) to buy food for dinner from the place they'd eaten lunch. Despite being denied barbeque, Choji had placed his stamp of approval on the inn's limited pork fare. The others were happy enough to eat something other than camp rations. Even food imperfectly reheated over the campfire was better than the dull albeit nutritious rations they'd brought with them.

After they'd eaten, cleaned up and gathered around the camp fire, Shikamaru finally revealed all he knew about the mission before they settled down to sleep.

"We're headed for a small village in the mountains called Mountain Ridge."

"Good name for a mountain village," Naruto smirked and poked Choji who responded in kind.

Shikamaru ignored them and continued. "It's near the border of the Wind Country. They're governed by a town council and have a village constable to maintain order, but no local ninja. Apparently, they're not accustomed to unusual crimes so they sent to Konoha for help." He paused and waited for more comments, but they were paying more serious attention this time.

"A body was found outside the Southern entrance to the village. The man had been stabbed in the heart. His identity had been obliterated chemically probably by an acid of some sort. Based on the meager description they could gather from what was left of him, they questioned the villagers, but no one claimed to know him or to have seen a stranger of his description in the village. Obviously, the man was murdered and his identity obliterated by someone. It's our job to find out who the victim is, who killed him and why he was killed." He paused again and took a sip of water from his water bottle. He wasn't used to talking so much. He was generally a man of few words.

"Man, that doesn't sound possible from what you've told us," Naruto shook his head. It was definitely the mystery the Fifth said it would be.

"That may well be the case, but we won't know until we reach the village and perform our own investigation."

"If anyone can figure this out, it's you Shikamaru," Choji said with confidence.

"Yeah, but it sounds like someone went to a lot of trouble to make sure we don't find out anything." Naruto shook his head again.

"No crime is perfect. There's always something the perpetrator didn't account for. The question will be whether we're clever enough to find that something."

"I don't know."

"This is why the Fifth didn't want you getting the details of this case too early. Don't be a defeatist, Naruto. Wait until we reach the village and begin our investigation. This mission won't be as glamorous as those that allow you to use your fancy ninjutsus, but that's the point. We're concentrating on using our brains not our brawn this time."

"This might be the first time I've ever considered fighting to be an easy job, but I think I'd rather be facing a bunch of ninja armed to the teeth to investigating an impossible crime."

"There you go again thinking failure. Just wait until we get there—okay, Naruto. Let me be the judge of what's impossible. If I don't think this case can be solved, I'll be the first one to admit it. I won't waste our time if we can't come up with some clues."

"You can believe that about Shikamaru, Naruto. He'd rather be at home staring up at the sky, then listening to our complaints."

"Yeah, you're right, Choji. Sorry, Shikamaru. I won't even think about it until we know more."

"Are you okay with this, Hinata?" Shikamaru asked since she was so quiet.

"Oh yes. I feel as Naruto does. You're our team leader. What you decide is fine with me."

"Good. Let's get some sleep. I don't think we'll have any problems, but we should still keep watch. Hinata, why don't you take first watch. I'll take second watch. Naruto third and Choji fourth. A few hours each should get us through the night. Okay?"

"Yeah, sure." Naruto didn't care what position he held in the watch since he wouldn't be able to talk to Hinata without disturbing the others. He settled down, and watched her for a few minutes before falling asleep. As a ninja he'd learned to sleep anywhere at any time, but he waited for Hinata to glance his way and smile so he could smile back before closing his eyes to sleep.


	4. Subtle Naruto

Elementary, my dear Naruto

IV. Subtle Naruto

"Naruto, why don't you get us a couple of rooms. One for us guys and one for Hinata. I'll check in with whoever's in charge of this village," Shikamaru directed his team.

They'd spent approximately ten minutes walking from one end of the small village of Mountain Ridge to the other. They'd found a few shops, one bar, one restaurant and one inn along the two perpendicular streets that made up the village—which left them with only one choice regarding accommodations. Shikamaru had been given the operating funds for the mission with strict orders from the Hokage to be a frugal penny pinching miser. The village hadn't been able to pay A or even B rank wages for this mission. The only reason she'd sent so many chûnin with one jônin was her brilliant idea that this would be a good training mission for her select group of chûnin. Ordinarily, she'd probably have sent a simple jônin-genin team to check out the situation, but it had sounded like the sort of mission Shikamaru excelled at. She thought it ideal to give him a more appreciative audience—one she'd primed with the directive to observe and analyze a genius in action.

"Right," Naruto agreed readily. That was an assignment he could easily handle. It was the rest of the mission he wasn't so sure about. He led the way into the inn not noticing that only Hinata followed him.

There was a middle-aged, bald, chubby man at the front desk. As Naruto approached he looked up and smiled broadly. "Greetings newly weds! Allow me, Kazuhiko Endoh, proprietor of the Mountain Ridge Inn to welcome you to the best honeymoon inn in all of the Fire Country and beyond."

"Unh? What?" Naruto looked around him, but found only himself and Hinata in the lobby. When he realized that the man was addressing them, he flushed a deep red and glanced quickly away from Hinata blushing furiously at his side.

"I can always pick out the newly weds," the man continued grinning and clapping his hands. "We get quite a few of them here. This is a great place for honeymooners. We're off the beaten path, secluded and have a wonderful hot springs behind the inn. You'll love it here," he rhapsodized.

"No! No! We're not married!" Naruto told him hastily. He couldn't even look at Hinata again for fear he'd grow even more red in the face. Damn his fair skin!

"Not married? I could have sworn," he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "There's always such a sweet aura around newly wed couples—something truly special about couples in love—I'm hardly ever wrong," he looked from one to the other studying their faces for the signs he thought he'd witnessed.

"Well, you're _wrong_ this time," Naruto told him forcefully.

"I see." He continued to rub his chin and look from one to the other. His eyes suddenly narrowed. "Just one minute, young man—we don't cater to that kind of thing in this inn. If you're not married, you'll have to stay in separate rooms." He folded his arms over his chest and frowned disapprovingly at them.

"No! Wait! You don't understand—" Naruto sputtered feeling his face heat up as he lost command of the situation again.

"Hey, Naruto, did you get the rooms yet?" Choji asked coming up behind them.

The man's face relaxed into a smile again. "Ah, why didn't you say so? Is this the fortunate bridegroom?"

"What?! No! You've got it all wrong. There _is_ no bridegroom, no bride and no newly weds!" Naruto almost shouted, impatiently chopping the air with his hands to make his point

"Bridegroom? Newly weds?" Choji asked with a grin. "Hey, when did you two get married?"

"Don't be stupid! Of course, we're not married! There's been a misunderstanding," Naruto shook his head vehemently. This was so completely embarrassing him—and he wasn't easily embarrassed. He couldn't imagine how Hinata must be feeling when she embarrassed far more easily than he did. "If I can just be allowed to _finish _a sentence. We want two rooms—"

"Two rooms for three people? Two young men and a young lady traveling alone together? You don't look like brothers and sister," the innkeeper asked looking disapproving again.

"Two rooms for four people. Three guys in one room. We're here on business," Choji explained agreeably.

"He doesn't need to know that, Choji. It shouldn't matter why we're here. We're paying customers." He was thoroughly irritated that the man would never allow him to finish explaining—plus he asked a lot of nosey questions—and he smiled too much.

The man smiled again. "You're right. The customer is always right. It's none of my concern. You can visit our village for whatever reason you wish. We _welcome_ all visitors. We _love _visitors. We have _excellent_ accommodations that will meet your every need. Two rooms, you say?" He reached beneath the desk for two room keys. "So, you're here on business—are you merchants, then? Those are usually the only business travelers we get at the Mountain Ridge Inn. We specialize in honeymoons and getaway retreats."

"We're ninja," Choji answered.

"Choji! What are you doing? He doesn't need to know that either," Naruto exclaimed. He was usually the one who naively revealed too much on a mission. He wasn't used to being the voice of caution.

"It's okay, Naruto. Shikamaru said there was no way we could keep our mission a secret. This place is too small. If they don't already know why we're here, everyone will know as soon as he talks to the mayor."

"Ah! So you're the ninja, Mayor Kobayashi sent for? I heard he was bringing in investigators to solve our mystery."

"That's right. We're your investigators. Can we have two rooms _now_?" Naruto demanded a little disgruntled. It would have been nice if Shikamaru had explained the situation to him as well as Choji.

"Of course. I have a large room that should accommodate three gentlemen and a very nice smaller room for the lady. I've never met a lady ninja before."

"Female ninja are called kunoichi," Naruto grumbled.

"Is that so? How interesting? As it happens I don't know that I've ever met a male ninja before either. Is there a special name for you, too?"

"Just shinobi or ninja," Choji said.

"This is so interesting. We haven't had so much excitement in Mountain Ridge—not since the circus came through. Do you need help with your bags?" He rang a bell on the desk.

"No thanks, we just have our backpacks," Choji answered again when Naruto just stood looking angry. Maybe he didn't like being compared to a circus. Choji thought it was funny.

"Ninja travel light, I see. I hope you enjoy your stay and tell your all friends about our little retreat. You won't find a cozier getaway in all of the Fire Country."

"That remains to be seen," Naruto grumbled. He found the man's effusive sell tactics annoying—especially after embarrassing them so thoroughly earlier.

"My daughter will show you to your rooms." He told them as a girl about their age arrived. She was a plumb, pretty girl and gave both Naruto and Choji a quick interested scan. She ignored Hinata completely.

"Come with me, please," she said suggestively and with swaying hips led them down a corridor towards the back of the inn.

The corridor gave way to a long porch ranging the length of the back of the inn with seven doors on either side of the opening. Beyond the porch there was a small garden with a pond crossed by a small arched bridge that led to the high wooden fence guarding the privacy of the hot springs. It was a very pleasant vista.

The innkeeper's daughter looked back over her shoulder at Naruto trailing just behind her. "Our inn is small, but we have an excellent reputation. My father has given you the largest room in the inn—the best honeymoon suite. The other room is smaller and just next door. Are you two newly weds?" she asked Naruto. Hinata walked behind him with Choji beside her.

"No. We're not," he said more harshly than he intended. "The large room is for us," Naruto pointed between himself and Choji.

"Really?" she said in surprise. She looked back and forth between them as her mouth curved into a moue of disappointment.

Naruto flushed again. He was getting tired of this nosey interest in their relationships. If there were any other inn in this village he'd have rushed them out of here and on the way long ago. "We've got another roommate joining us. We're here on business."

"We're ninja," Choji grinned at her.

"Oh, so you're all just business associates?"

"And friends." Naruto allowed Choji to answer because he didn't know what to say. He wanted to claim something more with Hinata, but he didn't have the right to do so. He certainly felt more for her than just as a business associate or friend. Anyway, it was none of this girl's business. The proprietors of this inn were the nosiest group of people he'd ever met.

"Well, I hope you like it here. The hot springs has a male and female side, but it can be reserved at certain times for couples. We do see a lot of honeymoon couples here. They've always enjoyed the amenities." She fluttered her eyelashes and looked pointedly at Naruto.

"No honeymooners here now, right?" he asked. He wasn't in the mood to watch lovey dovey couples wandering around. It would give him too many ideas he wasn't suppose to have, and wouldn't have time to act on even if he did.

"Not right now. It's still a little cool. Late spring, summer and early fall are the most popular times for honeymooners." She unlocked the door of the room named Hasu no Hana. "This is the honeymoon suite."

The room consisted primarily of one large futon.

"Could we have two more futons in here? I don't want to share if I don't have to," Naruto asked. He figured Choji could sleep in the large futon. He and Shikamaru could manage with smaller ones.

"Of course. I'll tell my father after I open the second room." She took Naruto's hand and pressed the key into his palm. "If you need _anything_, please, don't hesitate to ask. I help with all the guests needs."

"Yeah, sure," he said and quickly recovered his hand. He'd been too surprised by her bold move to put up any resistance. Strange attractive women usually didn't pay this much attention to him. If he wasn't already interested in Hinata he might have been flattered. Then again, he might not have noticed at all since it never happened to him.

She paused at the door. "By the way, my name's Kimi." She fluttered her eyelashes again then swiveled and swayed out the door to show Hinata to her room.

Naruto closed the door firmly behind her. He'd found her more annoying than seductive. When he turned around he found Choji just behind him struggling unsuccessfully to hold in a laugh.

"I think you made a conquest, Naruto," he gasped.

"Shut up! I'm not interested."

"Of course not—you being a newly wed and all," he was shaking with laughter so hard he fell down on the futon.

Naruto flushed. "Shut up! That wasn't funny. It embarrassed Hinata."

"You, too. Your face couldn't get any redder."

"Wanna bet? Anger makes me even redder." Naruto's fists doubled, but he would have hit a wall before he would consider hitting Choji. He just didn't like being teased.

"Come on, Naruto. You have to admit that was funny. I bet you wished it was Sakura not Hinata standing there with you."

"No I don't. Sakura's engaged."

"Yeah, but you always liked her."

"Well, I don't anymore. Besides if Sakura had been there, she'd have punched me before she ever got embarrassed."

Choji laughed again. "You're right. That girl's got no sense of humor. Even Ino would probably have hit you. Hinata's the safest girl to have in that kind of mistaken identity situation. She didn't look like she even wanted to slap you. I could tell her face was redder than yours even though she kept her head bowed."

"Yeah, well, it was pretty embarrassing for her. Most girls are sensitive about that kinda stuff."

"Plus, that guy thought she was married to you. That had to be absolutely horrifying." He gave another sharp laugh.

"You think so? What's wrong with me?" Now Naruto really did want to hit Choji. That had been his first thought about the situation as well. He'd been more embarrassed for Hinata's sake than for himself. His fists doubled up again, and he stood stiffly above Choji.

Choji stopped laughing and sat up. "Nothin'. Nothin's wrong with you," he said simply. "Hey, she was probably just as horrified when he thought I was the lucky bridegroom. You and I just aren't the type of guys girls dream about for husbands."

Naruto's stance relaxed as he was disarmed by Choji's honesty. "Yeah? What's wrong with us?"

"Plenty from what Ino tells me. For one thing, she thinks I'm too fat," he sighed morosely.

Naruto was surprised. "You like Ino?"

"Not that way!" he said horrified. "She's just a friend. But she keeps giving me relationship advice—not that I ask."

Naruto wrinkled up his nose. "So what does she know? Your dad got married and you're just like him."

His expression brightened. "That's right, I am. My mom's terrific. I'd love to meet a girl like her."

"So what does Ino think's wrong with me?"

"Well—" he hesitated.

"Come on, tell me. I've probably heard worse."

Choji shrugged. "Okay. Here goes. You're a swaggering, flashy, screw-up."

Naruto waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, I've heard that before. Is that all?"

"Well, she can get pretty detailed, but that's the gist of it."

"Do you agree with her? Is that what you think?" Naruto was curious. He knew what most of the kunoichi of his age group thought of him, but he didn't really have a clue what the guys thought.

"I think—so what? I like you. Ino can find fault with any guy. What she really means is—you're nothing like Sasuke. Nobody measures up to Sasuke."

"You're kidding? Isn't she over him yet? He's been gone forever. Even Sakura's moved on and she had the worse case of Sasuke worship I'd ever seen."

"I don't get it, but that guy left a mark on all the girls. None of us have ever been able to measure up to what they think he was," Choji grumbled good-naturedly.

Naruto thought about his friend and teammate from long ago. Sasuke never gave a thought to all those girls swooning over him. They were more of a nuisance than anything else. He'd had deeper and darker concerns in his life than having a girlfriend.

"Aloof. That's what he was. He just didn't care. Why do girls find that so attractive?"

"I don't know. I don't understand girls at all myself."

"Neither do I. But I don't think I could be aloof even if I tried."

"Me either," Choji agreed shaking his head.

They looked at each other, grinned then laughed.

* * *

"When's Shikamaru coming back?" Naruto asked after he and Choji had hung around the room for a half hour waiting. The only thing that had occupied some of the time was watching two additional futons being installed. That had taken all of five minutes.

"I don't know. He didn't say. In a town this small, you'd think checking in would have taken about a second."

"Not if the mayor is anything like the inn keeper here. That guy wouldn't let me finish a sentence and he's nosey as hell."

"Maybe they don't see many people here. It makes them too eager to talk and ask questions."

"Maybe."

Naruto hated waiting. He wanted to get started on this mission. He needed to prove himself to Shikamaru and the Fifth. He had to get out of this room. He walked from one side of the room to the other before finally saying what he'd been wanting to say for awhile, "I think I'll go see how Hinata's doing."

Choji stood up. "That's right. You go check on your wife—" He held up his hand and grinned at Naruto's fierce look. "Sorry, I couldn't resist. You go check on Hinata. I'll go out front and look for Shikamaru. It's got to be dinner time by now. We'll find you when I find him"

They left the room together. Naruto waited until Choji was out of sight before he knocked on Hinata's door.

She opened it a crack to peer out. When she saw him she smiled and opened the door more widely.

"Hi. Is your room alright?"

"Yes. It's very nice."

"Choji went looking for Shikamaru. He hasn't come back yet."

"Oh, I wondered what was happening."

Ordinarily, he would have just walked in, but after all the fuss the innkeeper made he didn't want to cause a commotion by entering a single lady's room. Instead he said, "Come outside. We can check out the garden while we wait for Shikamaru and Choji to come back."

"Okay." She went inside to retrieve her room key then came out and locked the door.

They walked down from the porch to the garden. The garden was small but had lots of trees, shrubs and probably flowers in the right season. Surrounding the pond was a gravel path. They walked around the pond completely once then on the second lap around stopped at a bench hidden behind a large willow tree near the fenced hot springs. Naruto gestured to the bench. When Hinata nodded and sat down, he sat down beside her. They sat silently together watching the goldfish swim about in the pond. The silence was comfortable, but Naruto felt he had to break it—to apologize for the embarrassment he'd unintentionally caused her earlier. It was just something he had to get off his chest.

He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. "Hinata?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry about all that stuff at the front desk."

"It wasn't your fault," she protested softly.

"Yeah, well it felt like my fault. Stuff like that usually is my fault."

"It's okay, Naruto."

"It's not okay. That was pretty embarrassing for you—having someone think we were newly weds. I'm really sorry about that," he said gruffly.

"It was just as embarrassing for you."

Maybe, but not embarrassing for the same reason she must have been embarrassed. Maybe, that innkeeper thought _newly wed_ when he looked at the two of them because of Naruto. Maybe his interest in Hinata had been too obvious. But he couldn't tell her that. He didn't know how she really felt about him yet—and he just couldn't come out and ask—not until he was more certain of the answer. Subtly, Naruto, subtly.

He leaned back and grinned at her. "How could I be embarrassed if someone thinks I'm married? I've never been very lucky with girls."

Hinata frowned and looked down at her hands. She held them tightly in her lap afraid that she'd begin the nervous fiddling she always did in Naruto's presence. "That Kimi Endoh seemed very interested in you."

"Who?" He drew a complete blank. He didn't know anyone by that name.

She quickly glanced up at him. He did look completely baffled. "The innkeeper's daughter. Remember? She told you her name was Kimi."

"Unh?" Vaguely a picture formed in his mind of the innkeeper's daughter, but he hadn't remembered her name at all.

She ducked her head. "I saw the way she looked at you."

"Me?" He jabbed his finger at his chest. "Not me. She must have been looking at Choji." He grinned more broadly at the thought that Hinata might be jealous.

"She looked at you more particularly than Choji," Hinata insisted still keeping her face hidden from Naruto.

"Well, I didn't notice her at all."

"She was very pretty."

"She's not my type."

"She looked at little bit like Sakura," she persisted.

"She's still not my type," he assured her. He bent down to catch a glimpse of her face, but she kept it turned away from him.

She was silent for a full minute before she asked softly, "What is your type, Naruto?" She turned her head slightly so she could glance at him from the corners of her eyes. Her eyes widened in surprise to find his face bent down so close to hers.

He tried to catch her eye, but it was difficult at that angle. He thought she could see him, so he kept his face lowered to hers. He opened his mouth preparing to answer then closed it again as he was still putting together the right words in his head. Would he scare her off if he blurted out _You?_ Probably. This was the time for subtly.

Subtly not being a natural talent, it took him too long to figure out what to say. He opened his mouth again, but was only able to say, "Hinata—" before he heard Choji yelling his name. He immediately sat up not wanting to embarrass Hinata further if he were discovered leaning so close to her and lost his train of thought in the process.

Damn that Choji! He'd ruined another important moment with Hinata.


	5. Let the investigation begin

Elementary, my dear Naruto

V. Let the investigation begin

"I want each of you to study the body without comment or interaction. I want you to make individual observations based on your own abilities and knowledge. When I think you've had enough time for study, I'll begin asking questions about what you've observed. At that time, I'll find out how good your observational skills are. This is not a competition per se, but I will be harder on those who I believe aren't as focused as the others. I'm here to teach and challenge your intellect, not show you up. So use your time wisely. Any questions?" Shikamaru instructed in his usual bored voice.

He'd practiced this speech at least dozen times. He'd spent more time on it than he'd ever done on anything. These chûnin were his longtime friends, peers and allies. They would see through any bullshit he tried to throw at them. He had to convince them to forget what they thought they knew about him and remember only that he was their leader and teacher for this mission—more importantly, he had to convince himself.

He almost felt like a fraud in this role of teacher the Hokage had set up for him. He'd known Choji, Naruto and Hinata since ninja school. He'd cut classes with Choji and Naruto with Hinata as witness to their bad behavior. He knew he'd had a reputation as a lazy, care-for-nothing. He'd made a point of doing nothing to stand out from the other students. It wasn't until the chûnin exams that anyone other than Asuma Sarutobi, his genin team leader became aware of his true capabilities.

He'd been the only Konoha genin to make chûnin even though he'd lost his second match. Unfortunately, in the process he hadn't been able to hide his mental abilities. When confronted with a puzzle, he couldn't stop himself from solving it. Simply fighting didn't expose the true nature of his abilities. It was when he was required to analyze and strategize that his true skills were revealed. He simply couldn't stop his mind from engaging when he saw numerous possibilities as a result of different actions. He was doomed to be a leader whether he wanted to be or not. How he wished he could just be that average village ninja Choji had talked about. Average in Konoha was still pretty damned good. How troublesome to be above average.

Because he'd been resistant to the idea from the beginning, the Hokage had spelled out what she wanted from this mission in painful detail. From the moment she'd told him her _brilliant_ plan, he'd recognized an impossible task. What she'd required was anything but the simple matter of training she thought it should be. He'd tried to explain the flaws in her plan of setting him up as a teacher, but she wouldn't listen. Instead, she'd gone on and on about her confidence in his abilities, what a role model he was, and how she trusted him to bring home results.

He tried another tack and explained that intuitive thinking couldn't be taught, but she blew that argument off as well. When she'd first taken over as Hokage, she'd studied all her ninja thoroughly. According to all reports—he was a genius. A genius should have no problem with this mission. In effect, she wanted him to work miracles— no ifs, ands, or buts.

Studying his team, he thought about their abilities. He didn't believe any one of them was stupid—pigheaded at times, but never stupid. Each one had awesome ninja skills that had only increased with age and experience. He knew Choji and Naruto could outfight him if strategy were of no consideration. And he knew Hinata could see things with her blood limit that he could only guess at.

Choji was his best friend. He was a big guy with a big appetite, but he was also sensitive. He had a heart just as big as he was. He would sacrifice his own life for his teammates, and had proved that on more than one occasion. That was jônin quality.

Naruto was a show-off and clown, but he valued his teammates as he would family. He, too, would sacrifice everything to protect them. He had a genuine sense of honor and ethics that he was unembarrassed to share, persuading others to do the right thing. That was jônin quality.

Hinata was shy and sensitive, but devoted to her family and teammates. She had demonstrated many times her willingness to sacrifice her life for her teammates as well. She had overcome failure and a lack of self-confidence to become a powerful kunoichi. That was jônin quality.

He'd witnessed the on target instincts Naruto and Choji used that made analysis often unnecessary. Coming from the great Hyuga clan he could only speculate that Hinata had abilities he'd yet to see. They were all worthy in many ways to be jônin just as he was. The problems he considered stumbling blocks for the success of these chûnin were either impulsiveness or hesitation. Naruto was definitely impulsive. Hinata was definitely hesitant. And Choji could be both. However with practice and experience these problems could be overcome.

His mission—aside from the obvious one—was to make these three remarkable chûnin look at a situation in ways they hadn't done before. That was the way he'd chosen to interpret his job. No matter what the Hokage thought, he couldn't really teach them to think like him, but he could show them how to think, observe and analyze in their own ways using their own innate abilities.

If he could give them a new way of looking at a problem, then he would consider this mission a success. Too damn bad if the Hokage didn't agree with him. She'd just have to lump it—but he wouldn't say that to her face. He could be most diplomatic when the occasion warranted. An ounce diplomacy generally saved him a pound of troublesome aggravation.

"Wait a minute. How are we supposed to learn how you think if we don't see you in action?" Naruto demanded. Despite Shikarmaru's statement to the contrary, he felt pressured to be competitive—and he didn't want to better either Hinata or Choji in this instance—or more importantly be out classed by them. Fighting was one thing, but thinking—well, he sure didn't want anyone to think he was stupid—especially Hinata, but he knew he couldn't compete with Shikamaru's cerebration.

"Watching someone else think is about as interesting and rewarding as watching a pot boil. I want to see how well you do on your own first. Maybe you won't need me at all to solve this mission. I think you each have the capability to come to the same conclusions I already have," he sat down on a hip level chest, folded his legs and rested his head in his hand. If it wasn't so chilly in here he could take a short nap while he waited for them to make their investigation of the body. Between Choji's snoring and Naruto's talking in his sleep, he felt he'd hardly rested at all last night.

"What do you mean by that? You haven't examined the body yet."

"But I have," he told them with a yawn. "The mayor brought me over here yesterday after I checked-in. I did a preliminary search of the body then. I didn't tell you because it would have been tiresome to field questions. I didn't want you to have any preconceptions. This is your time to make your own observations."

"That hardly seems fair," Naruto grumbled.

"What I say is fair is what's fair. I only agreed to treat you three equally in this training—no one gets any advantage over the other from me. But I'm the leader here. I get to have any advantage I want. Do you have a problem with that—Choji? Hinata?"

"Whatever you say, team leader," Choji said with a grin.

Hinata shook her head, and looked sympathetically at Naruto.

"Naruto?"

He shrugged. It was fair, but he didn't have to like it. "Whatever."

"Okay. Any more questions?" he asked, but continued on quickly before Naruto could open his mouth again. "Good. Then get started."

* * *

Bright and early that morning after a quick breakfast, Mayor Kobayashi and the village constable Hikaru Hayama had led the Hidden Leaf Village team to an underground icehouse at the end of the village farthest from the hot springs. They'd stored the body in the coldest place they had available after it was found over a week ago, to keep it from decomposing before the ninja investigators could arrive.

The idea had come from the village healer when she'd been called in to look at the body. Once she'd told them the man had been stabbed, they'd realized the case had become more serious—not that finding a strange dead man at the southern entrance to the village wasn't serious. However discovering someone dead of natural causes and finding someone with a hole in their chest were vastly different circumstances. Once they'd questioned all the villagers, and no one could identify the body, they knew it was a problem beyond their means to solve. Even the Constable Hayama had been unable to offer a next step to investigating the case. Since it had been a stranger that had died and not a citizen, he'd deemed it unnecessary to waste the time to investigate. His idea had been overridden by the entire village council. No one else had been comfortable allowing a murder to go uninvestigated—even a stranger's murder.

The icehouse was a dark, dank, and creepy hole in the ground. The hole had been covered by a wooden platform. A heavy wooden door with an iron handle that lifted up revealed the opening with wooden steps leading down inside. It was usually kept padlocked so curious kids wouldn't get stuck playing inside unable to lift the heavy wooden door if it closed on them.

Blocks of ice were cut from a lake in the mountains during the winter months, brought down and stored in the icehouse for use by the villagers during the summer. Besides the ice, the villagers stored much of their food supply that was susceptible to spoilage in the icehouse. There were many chests, boxes and barrels stacked along one of the walls.

Amidst the ice and storage containers in a cleared area near the bottom of the stairs, the body lay on an old wooden table covered with a large dark cloth. Neither of their escorts went down the stairs into the icehouse with them. Instead, they'd provided several lanterns apiece to give the group enough light to work by. How much light did they really need to see for themselves that the man had been stabbed to death? That was Constable Hayama's reasoning at any rate.

Shikamaru having been there before led the way down into the icehouse. Once they were all inside, the constable lowered the wooden door to keep the area cold. Leaving it open would cause the ice to thaw more quickly, he'd explained. The echoing slam of the wooden door and the cutting off of natural light only made the space down below seem even more creepy, dank and dark.

Mayor Kobayashi was a morose, tall, thin, older man with stooped shoulders. When he'd first greeted the group in the morning he'd said, "Oh my, you're all _so_ young. You can't be very experienced at this sort of thing. What _was _your Hokage thinking to send such a young group of ninja? What will we do if you can't figure this thing out? Will she send more experienced ninja?"

Constable Hayama was a scowling, short, muscular, middle-aged man. His greeting had consisted of, "What _is_ this? _Kids_? I could have handled this myself. How are kids gonna be of any use? This was a stupid waste of village funds, but nobody listens to me. I'm just a lowly paid village employee. But I don't complain. I just do what I'm told."

Needless to say, Naruto wasn't predisposed to like either one of these newest Mountain Ridge citizens he was forced to meet. In fact, he hadn't met a single citizen of this village that he liked. They all just rubbed him the wrong way. Even the Mountain Ridge Restaurant at which they'd had a fairly decent dinner had been populated by nosey and overly chatty people.

It had begun with their waitress, Noriko.

Naruto had been in a good mood at the start of the meal because he was sitting beside Hinata. The disadvantage was that he couldn't look at her very often without cluing Shikamaru in on his interest. He had to keep up the pretense that Hinata meant no more to him than any other teammate. He didn't want to cause her any more embarrassment than he already had if this bothered her. However, based on the frequency of her smiles, he was hopeful it didn't.

So he'd been sitting there feeling pretty good when an intrusive, inquisitive voice interrupted his pleasant mood.

"Hi, I haven't seen you folks around here before. We don't get many visitors in Mountain Ridge this time of year. Those are cool headbands you're wearing. What's that symbol in the center? Does it mean something special?" She glanced between Choji and Naruto both sitting on the outside seats of their booth. She was a slim, pretty girl a few years younger than they were. She smiled brightly and seemed more inclined to chat than take their order.

Choji put his hand up to his headband, slipped his thumb under the metal plate and explained, "This is a ninja headband. The symbol on the metal plate stands for the Hidden Leaf Village. We're Konoha ninja."

"Wow ninja! That's so cool! I bet you're the investigators Mayor Kobayashi sent for. I heard he was sending for some ninja to solve our mystery."

"That's right. We're your investigators," Choji continued to chat with the waitress while the others sat silently.

Shikamaru thought it too boring to answer the same questions over and over again. He'd met a few more villagers than the others and had been asked similar questions by each one. Choji was welcome to the attention.

Naruto kept his mouth shut not from bored but from irritation. Since the mistaken identity situation when they'd first checked-in at the Mountain Ridge Inn, he'd felt at a distinct disadvantage. The innkeeper still frowned whenever he saw him and he'd obviously told the story to his friends. Every villager they'd passed on the way to the restaurant seemed to point and gawk at them. It wasn't the sort of attention Naruto cared for. The way the villagers behaved at seeing ninja made him feel like a freak show.

Hinata remained quiet simply because that was what she usually did when she was uncomfortable. Her confidence had been severely challenged by this mission. She preferred to remain silent and observant until she understood what Shikamaru intended for them. She really wanted to make the Hokage proud of her.

Added to that in her present company Hinata didn't stand a chance of being noticed. She was the smallest of the group and the least ostentatious. Beside Naruto with his spiky blonde hair and excitable temper, Choji with his bushy chestnut hair and large size, and Shikamaru as the tallest of the group and with his bored superior air, she was practically invisible. It also didn't help that every young woman they met was pretty and friendly. Her confidence especially let her down when she compared herself to other women. She only hoped none of them made an impression on Naruto. She didn't think she stood a chance against such affable, attractive women if they seriously pursued him.

"Boy, was Constable Hayama mad about that. He's been the constable here for about twelve years. He's never had a case more serious than robbery. It was the mayor that insisted on outside investigators. He demanded experts on this case. The village council agreed," she continued.

"I haven't met either the constable or the mayor yet. I'm looking forward to it," Choji lied politely.

"Hey, Dad," Noriko suddenly yelled into the kitchen. "These are the ninja Mayor Kobayashi said would find out about that dead guy."

After she'd announced to the entire room who they were, they had to eat their meal under the inquisitive eyes of everyone present. Suddenly the small village seemed very large as over twenty pairs of eyes beamed towards their group. Ordinarily, Naruto would have enjoyed the attention, but he didn't feel as comfortable about this mission as he usually felt on a mission. If this had been a simple case of fighting and defeating an enemy force, he'd have no problem, but he wasn't as confident about their ability to solve a mystery. If they had to leave the village as failures, he'd rather nobody remembered his face.

A tall, wide-shouldered, older man came out from the kitchen wiping his hands on his apron. "You're the investigators, right? Welcome to Mountain Ridge. We sure hope you can clear up this mystery. Have you seen the body yet? I had a look at it myself. What do you think?"

They could sense more than see all the other occupants of the restaurant freeze in mid-bite or mid-sip and lean in their direction hoping for some interesting piece of gossip.

"We can't talk about the case until the investigation is complete," Shikamaru announced distinctly in his bored voice.

After he spoke there seemed to be a collective sigh of disappointment and everyone slowly went back to what they'd been doing. However, that didn't stop everyone from watching them as if they were unique specimens. It made for a very strained dining experience.

It didn't help that their waitress kept stopping by their table to chat and ask questions they couldn't or wouldn't answer. She also took great pleasure in pointing them out to any new diners that appeared at the door as if they were the restaurant's main attraction. As it was even Choji stopped being sociable and didn't have his usual appetite under the continued scrutiny of so many people. They exchanged the 'lets get out of here' look many times over the course of their meal and ate hastily. It was the fastest meal any of them had ever eaten.

Once they were back at the inn Shikamaru silently waved them all inside the largest of their sleeping quarters.

After firmly closing the door, he said, "Listen, you guys, don't talk about the case with anyone. Just tell anyone who asks what I said at the restaurant. 'We can't talk about the case until the investigation is complete.' Don't answer even the simplest question. It's too easy to let something slip. Until or unless we know better everyone we meet could be guilty of this crime. Got that?"

"No problem. I don't know anything anyway," Naruto said.

"Don't worry about that. You will, Naruto. I guarantee it," Shikamaru promised with a grim smile.

* * *

Now here they were gathered at the resting place of the murdered man, the critical moment of decision facing them. Did they have what it took to solve a mysterious death? Were their brains as good as their brawn?

After Shikamaru had given them the go ahead, the three chûnin exchanged a solemn look and took a deep collective breath before they approached the table.

Choji and Naruto flipped the cloth off the body. Next they moved a few barrels around the body that Hinata placed lanterns atop so the area was well lighted. With no more preparations left to make, they were forced to move in and begin their examination.

He was large, but not fat. He wore the dark, serviceable clothes of a typical villager. He had black hair. Other than that, his face, hands and feet were chemically burned beyond recognition. Unless he had some distinguishing mark on an area of his body not readily discernable, even his mother wouldn't have been able to identify him.

The body was cold and heavy so the only time they spoke was to ask for help to turn it over or to lift a body part or to ask someone to move or hold a lantern closer for them. Otherwise, the icehouse was a very quiet place while the three took this first part of the mission most seriously.

After what seemed like a very long time, but was only about an hour Shikamaru finally said, "Time's up."

The three chûnin were actually standing back from the body looking at it from afar when they were told to stop. They'd each completed their examination, but were reluctant to claim to be finished until told to do so. None of them were confident that they'd observed everything they should or could have.

"I think you've studied the body long enough. Let's begin," Shikamaru hopped down from the chest he'd been resting on. "First who'd like to be my amanuensis?"

"Say what?"

Shikamaru grinned, "I'm just showing off. That's a fancy name for scribe. I need someone to take notes. We won't have the body to study for much longer. The mayor wants to have it buried as soon as possible. We need to write down our observations so we don't forget anything."

"I will," Hinata volunteered after a long moment of silence in which both Naruto and Choji looked everywhere but at Shikamaru.

"I was hoping you'd volunteer, Hinata. I've seen both Naruto's and Choji's handwriting. There's no point in taking notes if you can't read 'em. I hope your handwriting is nice and neat."

"Yes, I always excelled at penmanship," she said with a shy smile.

"Great. I brought everything you'll need in my pack back."

He waited for Hinata to prepare to take notes. He watched her and when she nodded to him that she was ready, he said, "Now Team Shikamaru, let's really begin our investigation."


	6. Investigators at work

Elementary, my dear Naruto

VI. Investigators at work

Technically, they didn't begin exposing their observation skills to Shikamaru immediately.

Shikamaru had a little ice breaker for them first. He poured out cups of hot tea he'd brought in a thermos that he'd requested at the restaurant after breakfast. He'd remembered the icehouse from his original visit as living up to its name. He was definitely beginning to feel every meaning of the word dank.

After feeling the hot tea warm his insides as well as his hands, he introduced the next step in their investigation. "Okay, team, we're going to conduct this part of the investigation methodically."

With his hands in his pockets, Shikamaru leaned against a chest. He wasn't the type to pace or gesture. When he did his thinking he preferred to keep still with his mind the most active part of his body. At those times, some people might think he was sleeping, but those people were totally unobservant and completely wrong. He only fell asleep when he was bored—and it was totally obvious.

"This means that I don't just want you blurting out observations in a disordered jumble. I know this is completely foreign to you guys—Hinata excepted—but we need to do this in an orderly, organized fashion. We've got to be meticulous. We've got to be detailed. We've got to be exacting. Once we tell the mayor we've completed our examination that's it. We won't be able to go back to the body to check out new ideas. It'll be unavailable decomposing deep in the ground. We've got to be thorough here and now. Got it?" Shikamaru explained bluntly to his team.

He didn't pause to receive their acknowledgement of his question. He'd intended it to be rhetorical anyway. He couldn't make himself any clearer or more precise. They had no choice but to get it. "Hinata, it's important that you make a complete record of our observations. No idea, no thought, no remark no matter how seemingly casual, unrelated or incomplete is unimportant—in other words—_everything's_ important."

This time he waited for her to nod her understanding, before continuing.

"You guys—I don't care how silly a thought might be—say it out loud—don't keep it to yourself. Those seemingly trivial, ridiculous ideas are often the fuel that power intuitive thinking. You may not understand how this works yet, but most of us think along linear paths—that means in a straight line—from A to B to C. Intuitive thinking consists of leaps that take you from A to C or beyond without needing a direct link. You've all probably made those kinds of leaps in your thinking in the past. Try to remember what it was like to have an idea that seems to have no direct connection to what was going on or being said at the time. You would have made an unconscious connection." This time he paused and waited for them to nod their heads. He waited a few seconds longer than he thought necessary for them to get it.

"The problem with that sort of thinking is that to prove your point you need to backtrack and find a connection that will convince others. People don't trust intuition when they can't see the logical linear steps. They want all the dots connected so you have to think backwards from your leap. But I find thinking backwards is actually easier than thinking forward. Knowing the beginning and end is just a question of filling in the blanks in between. You'll understand how it works more clearly as you learn to trust your intuition."

He noticed the glazed eyes and slackened mouths on the male members of the group, but he wasn't sure Hinata got it either. She was staring intently at him, but intense and enlightened weren't the same thing. He sighed and stopped the lecture. There were just some things that had to be experienced for oneself and could not be explained. He could only plant the seed. They'd have to fertilize the crop and harvest it themselves.

"Now I'm going to ask each of you one at a time to tell me one thing you've observed. I'll mix up the order so you'll all have an opportunity to demonstrate your observational skills. Don't be disappointed if someone else beats you to an observation. We're still all in this together to solve this mystery. The important thing is to find every clue available. Okay team, we'll start from the outside first—from the easiest to the most difficult. Ready?"

They nodded. Hinata had her brush poised to take notes. Naruto shifted restlessly from foot to foot anxious to impress. Choji scratched his stomach wondering if anyone would care if he had a snack. They were nervous, but ready to begin.

"So Choji, what can you tell me about the man's clothes? One observation only."

Choji reached into his pocket, and pulled out a few cookies. Not everyone would be able to eat in the presence of a corpse, but eating calmed him down. He popped one in his mouth, chewed and swallowed before answering the question. "Well, they seem new. There aren't any worn spots on his knees, elbows or seat. There aren't any sweat spots or stains from wear. The only dirt is loosely clinging to his backside where he must have been lying on the ground at some time."

"Naruto? Your turn."

He stopped fidgeting, but rushed his response. "Yeah. How about this? There's no matching knife hole in the shirt, and very little blood on the clothes."

"Hinata?"

She finished writing down Naruto's observation before answering. "I think the clothes were meant for a shorter, stockier, but less muscular man. The waist band of his pants are very loose and the pants are somewhat baggy. His shirt is tight in the shoulders and short-waisted. The shirt sleeves and pants legs seem shorter than normal."

"Speculation anyone?"

"Those aren't his clothes," Choji announced.

"He was dressed in them after he was stabbed," Naruto added. "Maybe his clothes were completely saturated in blood and the killer didn't want it on him when he moved the body."

"Or his clothes were recognizable in some way and that's why they were removed," Hinata said thoughtfully.

Shikamaru nodded. "I agree with the validity of all of those theories. There may be more than one reason for the change of clothes. Mark those last two ideas as questions, Hinata. By the way, Naruto, I think you had an intuitive leap. We haven't examined the place where the body was found yet, but considering the lack of blood you've deduced that he wasn't killed where he was found. Good thinking."

He waited for Naruto to calm down and watched Hinata finish writing before continuing. "Next. What did you observe about his body? Naruto?"

Naruto took a moment to choose the best observation to present. He had to follow up his last success with something really special. "There are chemical burns in other places on his body besides his face, hands and feet. But they don't appear accidental spills. Some are long and some curved as if they were drawn. Some are roundish but also look drawn. I think they were deliberately made maybe to cover up something on his body."

"Choji?"

He glanced over at the body, thinking about his next observation since Naruto had taken his first choice. "There are faint indentations around his wrists and ankles. It's hard to see in this light, but I think the skin is lighter in color in those areas, too. I don't think they're indications of bindings. I think if he'd been bound the marks would have been deeper with abrasions and bruising. I think he was wearing something around his wrists and ankles that he wore all the time. Those things were removed with his clothing probably for the same reasons."

"Good observation, Choji. Those marks were very hard to see and I like your reasoning. Hinata?"

She'd noticed both of those things, too. She was glad Shikamaru had taken Naruto and Choji first. There were things she'd been able to observe with her Byakugan that they couldn't. She'd have her moment to shine eventually. "I believe his hair has been dyed. Hair continues to grow for sometime after death. Very closely to his scalp the hair at the roots appears lighter and finer than the rest of the hair. Instead of black hair, I think his hair is actually brown. It's difficult to tell precisely in this light."

"Very good, Hinata. I didn't notice that on my examination. What theory do you draw from everything we've observed so far?" He was pleased with his team. They were already growing confident enough to offer more than just straight observations. They were thinking about their observations now and throwing in some conclusions, too.

She finished writing down her own observations then tapped the end of the brush thoughtfully against her cheek. "Burning his face alone would have made identification very difficult if not impossible. But that wasn't enough. There must have been something about his clothes, his hands, his feet and other areas of his body that would have been identifiable. I think he was made as ordinary as possible by disguising anything that would distinguish him. There is something about him the killer didn't want us finding out."

That was almost the longest speech Hinata had ever made, but like Naruto and Choji, Shikamaru, also didn't make her feel awkward, uncomfortable or nervous. He seemed genuinely interested in her opinion. She was beginning to find this business of analysis rather interesting and if not for the seriousness of the subject matter—fun.

Shikamaru nodded again. "I agree with that theory, too, but let's still make it a question. It's too early to make assumptions. We need more facts. Does anyone else have something to add?"

Neither Choji nor Naruto could add anything. They only wished they'd been asked first, because they'd come to the same conclusion Hinata had—though perhaps not as eloquently.

Naruto grinned at Hinata. Even though her shyness had become cute and endearing to him, he liked seeing her confident. He found her forays into confidence even more appealing. She'd never be as aggressive as Sakura or Ino and he wouldn't want her to be, but she could be assertive when she needed to be. He was just as glad her assertiveness didn't involve punching him when she was annoyed. He much preferred her gentle disapproval and calm manner to the way Sakura expressed her displeasure. Her shyness had prevented him from recognizing her wonderful qualities for a long time, and he trusted it had hidden her from most other suitors as well. He just hoped that in such close proximity neither Shikamaru nor Choji found her as attractive as he did in either guise.

"Okay. Let's move on. What did you notice about the wound? Choji?"

He ate another cookie as he thought about it. "It's only 2 cm. wide. The blade was small."

"Naruto?"

"The edges aren't serrated so the blade was smooth," he added quickly glad that Choji hadn't expanded on his thought. There hadn't been all that much to observe with such a small hole.

"Hinata?"

"I traced the length of the wound with my Byakugan. It was approximately 25 cm. long and angled upwards. If it had been straight it would have missed his heart altogether and the man could possibly not have died. But I think he died quickly from this fatal wound. Blood loss was not overly significant for the size of the wound. He still has a great deal left in his body."

Shikamaru sighed. "That blood line limit of yours is a definite advantage. Naruto, what do you conclude from Hinata's observations?"

Naruto closed his eyes and pictured the angle of the wound in his mind from Hinata's description. "The killer was shorter than the victim," he said with conviction.

"Or?"

Naruto's brow furrowed. "He was sitting down or kneeling? Could the victim have been bending over the killer? When I visualize it that doesn't seem right."

"Yeah, if he were bending over wouldn't the blade have stabbed in a straight line not angled?" Choji asked scrunching his eyes as he visualized the scene himself.

"I think you're both correct. The killer was probably either shorter or sitting and the victim could not have been bending over him or her. Of course another explanation could be that they were fighting and both bending awkwardly when the blade entered his body. But I think if that were the case we'd find that the knife wound was more jagged and larger. I also think we'd find more bruising on the body that hadn't been obliterated by a chemical. The body hadn't decomposed very much before it was found so the killer hadn't waited very long for bruises to appear. Anything to add, Hinata?"

She shook her head as she furiously took notes.

Shikamaru watched her and waited again for her to finish. His next question was for her alone. "Hinata, did you notice anything else with your blood line limit?"

"Yes, I did. The man has fully developed chakra channels."

"Ah," he smiled in satisfaction. Hinata's unique observations merely verified his own conclusions. "That's good to know. Very good. Does anyone have an idea what that means?"

"He's a ninja!" Naruto and Choji announced together without hesitation. Shikamaru's comments had given them the time to think it through.

Shikamaru nodded his head. "I believe you're right. The killer tried his best to confuse the situation by changing the man's clothes and burning his hands, feet and possibly battle scars from the body. He had no way of knowing that we'd have a member of the Hyuga clan with us today. He could have saved himself a lot of trouble. Of course, if he'd any suspicion of our capabilities he might have destroyed the body completely or buried it so we'd have nothing to hang an investigation on. It's often fortunate that most people don't know what we can do. Okay, is there anything else we should make a note of before we leave this damn hole in the ground?"

"He's about 175 cm. tall," Naruto added hastily before anyone else could speak. Shikamaru had said any thought they had was important so if this turned out to be an important observation he wanted to be the one to make it. He'd actually performed the measurement imprecisely making an estimate of the man's height by using his feet—since he knew how long they were. He'd measured the distance from the man's head to feet by walking carefully toe to heel across the floor following the length of his body on the table. He'd only done it as a break when he couldn't think of anything else to observe.

"Good idea, Naruto. Let's take complete measurements. Who knows," he shrugged, "they may come in handy at some point for identification purposes. Choji, why don't you do that and give Hinata the figures? Naruto, I want you to pull out some of the man's hair by the roots and put it in this bag. We might need to know his true hair color."

They set about following Shikamaru's latest instructions. When they were finished, Shikamaru stood silently looking at the body. He couldn't think of anything else they could get from it before it was interred. He hoped he wasn't forgetting something vital. He didn't think so, but even he wasn't fallible—unfortunately.

* * *

They climbed out of the icehouse with Shikamaru, Naruto and Choji carrying all the lanterns while Hinata hung on to her notebook and writing instruments.

Shikamaru shivered as the bright morning sun began to warm him. He hadn't realized just how cold that place had been. It had insidiously crept through his body until now the sun almost hurt as it warmed his cold extremities. He glanced over at his team. Of the three Hinata seemed to have suffered the worse effects from the cold—she almost looked blue. Choji had his extra padding to keep him warm and Naruto—well, Naruto had his own internal resources that seemed to protect him. "Are you okay, Hinata?"

Her lips were quivering and her voice quavered. "I'm getting there now that we're out of that place." She turned her face up towards the sun and wrapped her arms around herself to warm up more quickly.

"You should have said something. We could have taken a break above ground to warm up."

"No, no. I didn't want to break the momentum. Besides once we were out of there, I don't think I'd have been able to go back down again." She shivered but not from the cold this time. Keeping company in cold storage with a violently dead body had given her the creeps. The flickering shadows from the lanterns, the damp, the cold—everything had only added to the ghoulishness of the situation. If it hadn't been for the presence of the calm Shikamaru, the large Choji, and the sunny Naruto, she wouldn't have been able to handle it.

"Here. Wear this until you feel warmer." Naruto quickly unzipped his jacket, took it off and threw it around Hinata's shoulders. From behind her, he rubbed her arms briskly to help warm her up. Why hadn't he noticed how the cold had been affecting her? He wished he'd thought of this in the icehouse. There had been no reason for her to suffer the cold so much. He should have realized. She was smaller than the rest of them—of course, she would have felt cold more quickly. He should have offered her his jacket a long time ago. He didn't need it as much as she did. What a selfish, self-absorbed idiot he was!

Even as she protested, she clutched his jacket gratefully. "But, Naruto, aren't you cold, too?"

"Naw. I'm fine." And he was. The fox must have been at work because he hadn't felt the cold at all after the first few minutes. "Here. Give me your hands."

He took her small cold hands and chaffed them between his large warm ones. Incredibly, his warmth began to transfer quickly to her. He could actually feel her fingers come to life again in only a few seconds. "I'm sorry I didn't realize you were so cold. I could have given you my jacket down there. Shikamaru's right—you should have said something, Hinata. Your health is more important than this investigation."

Her face warmed up quickly with her blush. "It's okay. I really didn't feel it until towards the end. I was too busy thinking and writing."

"Yeah, speaking of thinking. Hey, Shikamaru, how'd we do down there?" He turned quickly suddenly remembering he and Hinata weren't alone. But his face may have been a little redder than usual as he met Shikamaru's eyes squarely trying to act as if his concern for Hinata were a normal thing—just one teammate to another.

Shikamaru was looking back at him speculatively, but he made no comment about Naruto's actions. "You all did very well. It will help you in the future if you remember these words _methodical_, _organized_ and _detailed_. It can't hurt to take notes whenever possible, too until the procedure becomes rote. It's really just a matter of practice—and assuming every situation contains hidden information."

"Hinata did the best though, didn't she?" Naruto didn't mean to sound like a proud parent, but he did. She'd been awesome with her observations. He wished the Uzumaki family had some special blood line trait. That of itself would certainly have garnered him the respect he desired from everyone.

"She does have the advantage of the Byakugan. That doesn't mean we couldn't have come to the same conclusions without her. It just means we wouldn't have been as certain. Still, I'm glad we had you with us, Hinata." He put his hands in his pockets, but before setting off towards the inn he asked, "Are you warmed up now, Hinata? Need anymore help from Naruto?"

He turned away once he'd witnessed the two flaming red faces studiously avoiding his eyes. Who did they think they were fooling? Didn't they realize by now that you couldn't put anything past him? He wasn't considered a genius for nothing.


	7. Hinata's blushes

Elementary, my dear Naruto

VII. Hinata's blushes

Shikamaru took off at a leisurely pace with Choji walking beside him.

Naruto folded his arms across his chest and glared fiercely as he watched them walk away. It had sounded like Shikamaru suspected something about Naruto and Hinata, but he didn't really _know_ anything. He couldn't _know _anything. Naruto hadn't been that obvious about his interest in Hinata—had he? He'd barely talked to her down in the icehouse. He'd hardly looked at her. How could Shikamaru _know _anything? He could suspect, but he couldn't _know_.

He could simply be teasing Naruto and Hinata because of yesterday. Could Choji have told him about that newlywed mix-up? But when did he have the time? The three of them had been together in the same room since last night. Choji probably forgot all about it. Still, he felt uneasy about what Shikamaru might and might not know. He could be teasing because he thought the situation was funny not because he knew it was too close to the truth. Whatever Shikamaru's reasons, they would make for some uncomfortable verbal slams all during this mission. Just what he needed.

The only positive note was that Hinata had stayed by his side instead of following after Shikamaru and Choji. It could be because she wanted to stay with him, but it was probably from the embarrassment of Shikamaru's last remark. She might have wanted to keep her distance from his sharp tongue. Naruto was more than a little pissed off at Shikamaru for teasing him at Hinata's expense. That was uncalled for. If he'd wanted to pick on Naruto he should have left Hinata out of it. She didn't deserve it. But off-hand he couldn't think of any way to let Shikamaru know he was pissed off without revealing the very thing he didn't want Shikamaru to know. The only thing he could do was make things right with Hinata.

"I'm sorry that you're always embarrassed because of me, Hinata," he was still staring at Shikamaru's back as he apologized. If looks could kill then Shikamaru would feel a sharp pain right between his ribs about now.

"I'm not. Really. It's okay, Naruto," she assured him not liking the look on his face. She didn't want him to be angry with Shikamaru just because she'd been embarrassed. He'd be angry all the time if he took her signs of embarrassment too seriously.

"You always say that, but your face always turns red." He still kept his face turned towards their two team mates getting farther away.

"I can't help it. I blush easily. I always have." _Especially where you're concerned, Naruto_, she thought.

"I've noticed that. It's kinda cute."

"It is?" Okay, she was blushing again.

"Yeah." He stubbed his toe in the ground still not looking her way. He was amazed to discover that he could have his shy moments, too. Why was it so difficult to say nice things to Hinata? He'd never had any trouble saying this kind of stuff to Sakura. He knew she'd just punch him if she didn't like it (which was usually the case). With Hinata he couldn't tell if she liked it or not. She really did blush all the time so he couldn't be sure when she was upset, angry or just shy.

Hinata didn't know what to say. She wanted to encourage the direction of this conversation—she'd been longing to hear Naruto say anything along those lines for a long time—_but not now_. Already she could see Shikamaru looking back over his shoulder at them. "Naruto?" She reached out to touch his sleeve to get his attention.

"Yeah." He took her hand and looked down at her. Of course, she was blushing, but she looked him in the eye and not at his feet. That was something she wouldn't have done in the past.

She gave him a shy smile. "You're very nice, Naruto. I wish—I—oh—I think Shikamaru is waiting for us," she finished lamely.

"Let him wait." Naruto quickly dropped her hand, looked up and scowled. He certainly knew how to pick his moments. He couldn't wait for this mission to be over so he could deal with the important stuff in his life. Why had the Hokage thrown them into a mission together so soon after Hinata's return? When this mission was over, he wanted to ask Hinata on a date—somewhere without fellow shinobi watching them and without a stupid mission getting in the way.

"Man, that Shikamaru's really something." He wouldn't say what that something was in the presence of a lady. Instead, he started walking slowly towards the other two waiting in the distance—but very slowly. He meant it when he'd said let him wait.

Hinata felt relieved that Naruto didn't seem as angry as he was before. "He's incredibly smart. I'm really impressed by the way he led us through that investigation. I don't think he needed any of us to come to the conclusions we did. I don't even think he needed my Byakugan to figure things out on his own."

"Yeah, he's smart all right," he said it almost resentfully. He still felt some anger towards Shikamaru, but it was calming down. He was quick to flare, but it didn't last long. He wasn't the type to hold a grudge. "I never realized how smart. It's like he's not the same guy I remember from ninja school. He seemed to fail as many tests as I did back then. I remember Iruka sensei always yelling at a bunch of us together—Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba and me, because we wouldn't take his lessons seriously and learn to concentrate. I never had a clue that with Shikamaru it was just laziness not lack of smarts." This wasn't really what he wanted to talk about with Hinata, but with the other two not far enough ahead and watching them to boot, he couldn't risk getting into anything more personal just now. He regretted that they'd seen him holding Hinata's hand. He'd be sure to hear about that tonight.

"I know what you mean. It was always Sasuke and Sakura at the head of the class—never Shikamaru. I would never have guessed that he was the real genius of the class."

"We're not too shabby either. He said we all did a good job investigating that body. So maybe the Fifth was wrong about us. Maybe we all have what it takes to be jônin all along."

"You're right. We all did pretty well down there," Hinata agreed.

Naruto kicked a stone out of the way as they walked along the main street. Now what could he talk about? How he wished they were at the point in their relationship where he could hold her hand and talk to her about anything. He'd waited seven weeks for her to come back from her recuperating vacation so he could talk to her and now he couldn't think of anything that he could say. "So are you warmed up yet?"

"Oh, yes, I am. You must want your jacket back. Thank you for loaning it to me." She swung it off her shoulders and handed it to him.

"That's not why I asked. I just wanted to be sure you were okay. I wasn't very helpful when you really needed it." He took the jacket but didn't put it on immediately.

"No, really, you couldn't have known. If it really bothered me, I could have said something. But a shinobi must learn to endure hardships. I must be treated the same as any other shinobi," she told him determinedly.

"Yeah, but that wasn't a crucial situation. I'm sure if our lives were at stake you would have endured anything."

She flushed with pleasure at his words. She enjoyed this kind of compliment, too. "Do you really think so?"

"You know it. You were trained as well as any of us. I bet you have the scars to prove it."

"Well, yes, some."

"I'll show you mine if you show me yours," he joked.

"What?"

He scratched the back of his head. "Ah, that didn't come out right. I just meant—we both have a lot of scars to prove we're shinobi—all shinobi do."

"I suppose so." She frowned. "It's not very attractive having a lot of scars, is it?"

"Unh? What? Attractive? What does it mater? Scars are marks of honor. It means you've survived at lot of battles. That's a good thing isn't it?" he asked puzzled. He'd never really noticed the scars on any of the shinobi except maybe Ibiki Morino. That had been a shocking revelation when he'd taken off his head gear at their chûnin exams. It had made Ibiki one of the few sensei he always treated respectfully, maybe because he was always aware of the amount of pain he must have endured in his career.

She flushed. "Of course—but—I mean—you wouldn't want a girlfriend to have a lot of scars, would you? You'd want her to look pretty, wouldn't you?"

He grinned as it suddenly dawned on him what she was getting at. "Sure, I want my girlfriend to look pretty, but the superficial stuff is just part of what makes a girl pretty. On the inside she'd be sweet, courageous, talented—lots of other things that make her better than pretty." Did she realize he was describing her? "To my mind scars won in battle wouldn't detract from her looks. That would just mean she was a good enough shinobi to survive some nasty battles. I'd admire those abilities that made her strong."

She nodded. That made a lot of sense. Still, she was just as glad not to have a lot of ugly scars. She used every ointment and remedy the Fifth recommended to help her wounds heal cleanly and keep her scars as unobtrusive as possible. It was difficult to be feminine and a ninja sometimes. If she were better friends with the kunoichi of her age group, she could ask them how they managed, but she was closest to her usual team mates Kiba and Shino. She couldn't imagine asking them anything of the kind. Maybe she could ask Kurenai, their team leader. She managed to look attractive no matter what.

But there was no more time to pursue this interesting conversation. Despite the snail-like pace Naruto had held them to they'd finally reached the other two waiting outside the inn.

"What took you guys so long? It's lunchtime. I'm hungry," Choji complained. He still had a few snacks in his pocket, but he needed something more filling.

"Did you sneeze, Shikamaru? We were talking about you," Naruto grinned jauntily at him.

"I can guess at the tenor of that conversation," he replied dryly.

"I doubt it. We only had good things to say," Naruto told him not adding that his thoughts had been anything but friendly.

"You surprise me, Naruto. You've matured quite nicely."

"You sound like an old man. Maybe I should call you Grandpa Shikamaru."

"If you do I'll call you Knuckle-head. Isn't that what your sensei calls you?"

"Does not!" At least not to his face. "Where did you hear that? He's always treated me with great respect. "

They argued good-naturedly on their way into the inn. This time Hinata and Choji walked behind, but before they could do more than step inside they were pounced on by the innkeeper. He rushed over to them clasping his hands together.

"Ah, you've finally returned young ninja investigators. I told him to wait. I knew you'd want to talk to him. I thought you'd be back some time ago. The mayor said he took one of you to the icehouse yesterday so I thought you'd be back in no time. I know you all had to see him with your own eyes—but it was obvious the man had been stabbed to death—the healer told us that much from the beginning. What more was there to find out?"

"You'd be surprised," Shikamaru said very softly under his breath. He didn't actually want the man to hear his comment or he'd be in for more troublesome questions.

"Who are you talking about?" Naruto demanded impatiently. This guy really rubbed him the wrong way. Not just from yesterday, but he seemed like a real know-it-all telling them their business.

"Oh, I found him in the market. I knew you'd want to see him. It's Nohara Shibuya. He's the one who found the body. Constable Hayama must have told you that. Didn't he give you all the information he'd gathered on this investigation?"

Shikamaru shrugged. Constable Hayama hadn't been what he would have called informative. His stock response had been _You'll find that out for yourself_. "I'm sure he must have mentioned it. Yeah, we'll need to speak with Mr. Shibuya. Where is he?"

"We waited for awhile and you didn't return. I had inn business to attend to, so I treated him to the hot springs on your behalf. He's in the garden drinking tea now. I'll show you. Right this way," he eagerly started down the corridor to the garden not waiting to see if they followed him. Since it was in the same direction as their rooms, they would have followed anyway.

"Say, Shikamaru, that innkeeper's short. I think he could be the killer," Naruto whispered behind his hand as they slowly followed the innkeeper.

Shikamaru grinned. "Unfortunately, just because he's annoying doesn't mean he's a killer. Half the people in this village must be shorter than 175 cm. The killer could even be a female. What about his daughter—or did you enjoy her flirting too much to consider her a suspect?"

Naruto scowled. So Choji did tell Shikamaru about their check in experiences. "She's annoying, too. Keep it in the family. She can be his accomplice."

"Personally, if I had to choose someone annoying to be the killer, my vote would be Constable Hayama."

Naruto grinned. "Oh yeah, I didn't like him either."

"Too bad the mayor's too tall."

"Hey, maybe he was sitting down."

"Good thinking. I'll keep him on the suspect list."

"You're not serious."

"As far as I'm concerned—everyone's a suspect until proven innocent," he said darkly.

They came out of the long dark corridor into the sunlight. As they squinted their eyes to adjust from dark to light, Naruto saw a large dark shape spring towards them. Instinctively he stepped in front of Hinata and pulled out a kunai blade. But before he could do anything more, Choji was grabbing the shape which turned out to be a large, friendly black dog.

"Saki, get down!" An old man came hurrying forward. "Sorry about that, young masters and miss. He just loves greeting strangers." He grabbed the dog's collar and pulled him down from licking Choji's face.

"That was so cool—the way you jumped in front of her," Kimi, the innkeeper's daughter suddenly came out of nowhere pointing at Hinata, "and pulled out that knife to protect her! I wish you'd rescue me," she clapped her hands and gushed over Naruto. "You were cool, too, grabbing that dog," she added a little gushing credit for Choji.

"Wow, you ninja sure are ready for anything," her father added. He was easily impressed, too.

Naruto flushed. Ordinarily he would have enjoyed the admiration, but not from them. He really didn't want more attention from two people who had embarrassed him in the past and looked likely to continue to do so in the future. He just knew Shikamaru would have something to add later.

"Nohara, these are the young ninja investigators I was telling you about. I don't remember their names from check in. They never formally introduced themselves to me. Young ninja investigators, this is Nohara Shibuya. He and his dog found the dead man on the way into the village over a week ago. Last Wednesday, wouldn't you say, Nohara?"

The old man nodded. "That's right. It took me by such surprise I forgot to do my marketing that day."

"I'm Naruto. This is Hinata, Shikamaru and Choji." He tucked his kunai back in his pack glad that he hadn't accidentally killed the old man's dog, but it had been touch and go when he'd thought Hinata was threatened. He patted the dog on the head to show there were no hard feelings and received a big wet lick on the hand in return.

"Nice to meet you. The whole village has been talking about you all morning. This is the most excitement we've had since the circus came through the village. Remember that Kazuhiko? They only come through every five years."

Naruto scowled. He'd heard that one before. It wasn't any more flattering the second time around.

"We'll need to talk to this man alone," Shikamaru interrupted the pleasantries to get down to business.

"I know everything he knows," the innkeeper announced unwilling to leave the proceedings. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned comfortably against the wall as if he were settling in.

"All facets of this investigation must remain confidential." Shikamaru insisted bluntly.

The smile on his face fell into an unhappy sulk. "I know everything the mayor and constable know, too. I'm a member of the village council. We all examined the body and made the decision to send for investigators together," he protested.

His daughter added her own unhappy sound of protest. Her father must have made her privy to everything he knew, too. Shikamaru wasn't at all happy with that notion.

"I still have to insist that this investigation remain confidential until we conclude it. Any information we uncover remains our property until we deem it proper to release it. The investigation will only be hampered if everyone knows every detail. The killer of this man may still be around. He may even be a resident of this village. If he knows all the details, he'll be able to thwart our investigation," Shikamaru explained sternly and patiently.

""No one in this village would kill anyone! I can't believe you'd even consider it! I think you're barking up the wrong tree there. We haven't had a suspicious death in this village for a hundred years."

"Then you won't mind if we continue our investigation to prove you correct?"

He drew himself up haughtily. "Very well, young ninja investigators, you're the experts. I have no choice but to allow you to continue any way you see fit. You won't accuse me of interfering. I'll leave Nohara in your hands—but we expect results! Come Kimi." He wasn't happy about it, but he took his daughter by the arm and left them alone with the old man.

He looked wistfully after his host. "There's really not much I can tell you, young master."

"That's all right. Just tell us what happened. Hinata, you might want to take notes."

He held up his hand to stop the old man from speaking again until Hinata was ready. Then he withdrew his hand and nodded his head.

The old man rubbed his chin. "Well, it was like this. Saki and I were walking to the village to do some marketing. I usually come into the village once or twice a month to replenish my supplies. Sometimes I come in just for the company. Saki's a great companion, but sometimes I like to hear a voice other than my own, you know?"

He nodded. "You live alone?"

"Sorta. It's just Saki and me so I can't say I really live alone."

"Where's your home?'

"I live in a small hut about 2 km outside the village."

"What do you do?"

"You mean for a living? I prospect. I have a little claim on the land around my hut. I've been on that claim for almost 40 years now."

"What sort of mine is it?"

"A little of this and a little of that. Mostly gold, but I've sometimes found precious and semi-precious stones. My best find was a chunk of emerald. I don't know how big the stone turned out, but I made a pretty penny on the rough chunk. But that was a long time ago."

"Wow, gold!" Naruto's eyes lit up at the thought. Though finding an emerald wouldn't be half bad either.

"Is it profitable?"

"Well, I do turn a small profit, but nothing to get excited about. Mostly my finds pay for food, clothing and tools when I need 'em."

"What kind of risk do you find living alone?"

He scratched his head. "Nobody's ever tried to rob me if that's what you mean. Kazuhiko's right when he says nobody in this village is a killer. Nobody's a thief either. This is a nice little village."

"How did you find the man?"

"He was just lying on the side of the road. Even without Saki, I could hardly miss him."

"Did you touch him?"

"I only checked to see if he was alive. He almost looked like he was sleeping."

"What did you do next?"

"I found him after my half-way point. There's a tree stump that I sit and rest on if I need to. I hurried into the village to report him to the constable."

"You just left him there? You didn't move him?"

"Nope. I thought it best not to once I realized he was dead."

"When you brought the constable back with you had the body been disturbed in your absence?"

"Not that I could tell. It looked pretty much the same to me."

"You didn't recognize the man you found—you've never seen him before?"

He shook his head. "Well, it was kinda hard to tell. His face was all messed up, but he didn't look familiar to me. I know most of the folks in this village. He didn't look like any of 'em."

"I see," Shikamaru studied the man thoughtfully. He was old and hardy looking, but Shikamaru didn't think he could move a body—at least not very far. He seemed honest in his responses. His face was open and friendly. "I think that covers all the questions I have unless my colleagues have anything to add?" They all shook their heads. Shikamaru seemed to have covered anything they could think of. "Why don't you show us where you found the body?"

"Okay, young master. I've finished my shopping. I've been ready to head home. I only stopped by because Kazuhiko insisted. It wouldn't have been hard to find me when you wanted to." He drew forward a small wheeled cart loaded with bags of groceries. He reached for his walking stick lying across the top.

"Shikamaru, what about lunch?" Choji demanded looking longing at the food he saw in the cart. He'd waited most patiently for this interview to end. He thought he'd been most forbearing.

"Mr. Shibuya, would you care to have lunch with us? We can walk with you to where you found the body afterwards."

"That's very nice of you. I wouldn't mind if I do," he beamed his acceptance.

"Are you happy now, Choji?"

His stomach growled loudly and he rubbed it. "Not yet, but I will be. Let's hurry to the restaurant."


	8. Many questions and few answers

* * *

Elementary, my dear Naruto

VIII. Many questions and few answers

"I found him lying right here," old man Shibuya said and pointed to the ground when they'd reached the spot he'd told them about approximately 1 km outside the southern entrance of the village. "I recognize it because of this big tree growing almost in the road. It blocked my view of the man until I'd almost walked up to him."

They'd had an interesting lunch with the old man. Several villagers had stopped by their table to say hello hoping for some gossip. The only one answering any questions was the old man Shibuya, but with one piercing look from Shikamaru he'd kept his answers uninformative. Team Shikamaru had kept mum and eaten quickly.

"Were his feet or his head facing the village?"

"Ah—his head," the old man scratched his own head as he remembered. "Is that important?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "Who knows. I'm just trying to gather as much information as possible. I don't know yet what will be important and what won't."

He chuckled. "Kazuhiko, was right about you. Just because you're young doesn't mean you don't know what you're doing. At first they thought Konoha wasn't taking their mystery death seriously by sending such young ninja, but you impressed a lot of people from the first day. That's all I heard about in the market all morning, let me tell you."

Since this was only the second day of their investigation, Shikamaru accepted the compliment with a grain of salt. "Konoha doesn't produce unimpressive ninja," he claimed dryly.

"You don't say, young master," he chuckled again at Shikamaru's arrogant statement. "Well, is there anything else, I can tell you? I should be heading home. It's about time for my nap."

"If we think of any other questions, we'll look you up."

"I'm easy to find unless I'm working my claim. But I'm usually home by dark. Just wait for me if I'm not there." He took hold of his cart, called to Saki, and started down the road leaning on his walking stick.

Shikamaru watched until he couldn't see the old man anymore before turning to his team. "Okay, everyone, we'll search around this area. He probably wasn't killed anywhere nearby, but we need to verify that theory. Just be careful where you walk so you don't destroy any possible evidence."

They all followed his instructions, and slowly combed the area around and near the body. Considering that it had been over a week since the body was found, Shikamaru didn't really expect to find anything significant. The weather had been inclement at least one of those days plus wild animals would have trampled through any blood evidence. However, a thorough search had to be done to complete proper procedures. That was the lesson and example he had to set for his team even if it led to nothing tangible.

As it turned out, it was just as he'd expected—an exercise in futility.

They gathered together near the tree stump the old man usually rested at that he'd pointed out to them earlier. It was an easily recognizable landmark not far from where the body was found.

"What do we do now?" Naruto asked irritably. He couldn't picture the next step in their investigation. He was completely stumped. He felt like they were wasting their time on this mystery. There just weren't any clues. There was simply no way they could figure this out.

"I think our next step is to canvass the village again. We know a little more about the victim than the constable did when he'd first questioned everyone. We know the man actually had brown hair and was a ninja. Maybe that will stir a few memories."

"What does it matter if he was in the village or not?" Naruto complained. "Why bother questioning the villagers again? Wouldn't they have told the constable if any strangers had been there?"

Shikamaru stifled a sigh. "They would have—provided they were likely to volunteer that information or that the constable had thought to mention it to us. It depends on how they were originally questioned. Besides, it's better for us to gather information first hand than rely on possible misinformation."

"I just don't see that we're getting anywhere," he said in frustration. He looked at Choji and Hinata for some validation for his feelings, but Choji wasn't paying any attention to him and Hinata only looked at him sympathetically.

"This is just the beginning of our investigation, Naruto. Every new thing we learn is a new piece to the puzzle. When we collect enough pieces, the picture will begin to emerge. You need patience for this kind of investigation," Shikamaru explained patiently. He found the lack of information troublesome as well, but he wouldn't let his team know that. Low morale would lead to sloppy investigative procedures.

Enthusiasm wasn't his strong suit, so he'd have to act as if he knew more than they did to challenge them. Naruto worked best when he felt challenged. Choji would do what he asked out of trust and friendship. Hinata seemed the most interested in the entire process. She knew the value of details, so she'd do a good job simply for the sake of the job.

"Okay, okay. I'll be patient. What do want us to do now?"

* * *

"Naruto, you take the north end of the village. Hinata, the south, Choji the west, and I'll take the east. Ask everyone if they saw a ninja in the village last week, about 175 cm. tall with brown hair. Describe leather or cloth bands around his wrists and ankles. He may or may not have been wearing the insignia of his village on a head or arm band. He may have scars. Try to jog someone's memory. I think the man was in this village. I think that's why he was disguised. Your job is to prove my intuition correct."

"Right!" Naruto agreed enthusiastically now that he had an identifiable goal.

"When you're finished meet back at the inn. We'll compare notes then. Let's do it, team."

Naruto had absolutely no luck on the north end of the village. Nobody remembered a stranger of any description. The worst part of his investigation was that Constable Hayama lived in his area of the village and happened to be inconveniently at home.

"Well, well, well if it isn't one of the ninja investigators," he greeted Naruto sarcastically when he opened his door. "I told you everything I knew. What do you want now? You can't need _my_ help. I'm just a small village constable. I can't know anything essential to such an important investigation."

Despite the guy's belligerent attitude, Naruto was determined to keep his cool and remain supremely polite. It couldn't help their investigation to antagonize the village constable any more than he already was. It wasn't their fault that they were invading his turf. They hadn't invited themselves here. He'd try to take that into consideration when dealing with this guy and not to let it bother him.

"We have a little more information about the dead man, so we're asking everyone in the village again if they'd seen him," he explained with exaggerated patience.

"Oh yeah? What could _you _possibly have found out? There was nothing _to_ find out." He folded his arms across his chest making it clear that he wouldn't budge from whatever contrary position he took.

"For one thing, we found out that the man was a ninja."

"How do you _know_ that? How can you _possibly know_ that? You're just guessing," he accused.

Naruto tightened his hands into fists, his nails digging into his palms, and channeled his anger into his curled fingers. However, he couldn't manage to maintain a pleasant expression. His teeth clenched and his eyes narrowed. "You _obviously_ know nothing about ninja. There are many things we can determine that non ninja can't. Chakra is just one of those things."

"Chakra? What the hell is that? It sounds like a made up word," he sneered.

"It's the power that ninja rely on to perform their jutsus. Everyone possesses some chaka, but the average person naturally uses only a small amount of it. Ninja are trained to use and increase their chakra in ways _you _couldn't possibly imagine." Since Naruto had been lectured on this subject many times in his career, he had it down pat by now.

"That sounds like mumbo jumbo to me. It's just something you tell people to make yourselves look more important," he continued to sneer.

Naruto felt anger heat his face. "Believe what you want. Just answer my question. Did you or did you not see a ninja with brown hair approximately 175 cm. tall in the village sometime last week?"

"Brown hair? The man had black hair. Maybe you couldn't tell the difference in the dark."

"His hair was dyed."

"I don't believe it! You're making all this up to make yourselves look important. We don't need any of you ninja meddling in this case. It has nothing to do with the village. He wasn't killed here, so we shouldn't have to pay bogus investigators to investigate it."

Okay, Naruto was ready to hit this guy—he couldn't, but he sure wished he could plant his fist in the guy's smug face. Nobody called him a liar with impunity. "Just because _you're_ too lazy or ignorant to do a proper investigation, doesn't mean we can't handle one. If you knew how to do your job, we wouldn't have been called in."

"Why you—you _arrogant, lying toad_! What do you know about anything?" Despite his insults, the constable stayed physically clear of Naruto with the door ready to block any physical threat. He didn't think much of their investigative skills, but he was well aware of the physical prowess of a ninja. He didn't want to be hit, but if he was he would certainly scream bloody murder.

Naruto grinned nastily. Of all possible insults that particular one had the power to calm him down. "Why thank you, _Constable_ Hayama. I consider that a compliment. Some of my best friends are toads. _Now_ if you'll just answer my question, I can go away and make us both happy."

"The answer is _no_! I didn't see anyone with brown hair or black hair or a ninja anywhere in this village. Are you satisfied?"

"I'm not surprised that _you_ didn't see anything, Constable Hayama. Isn't that why _we're _here?" he retorted.

"Why _you_—get out of here!" he yelled and slammed his door.

"Glad, to," Naruto yelled back. Luckily this house was one of the last on his list. He was more than ready to return to the inn to make his report.

* * *

Hinata felt discouraged from her canvass of the south end of the village. She had hoped that their new discoveries would net more information, but no one had noticed any stranger of any description. Apparently strangers walked through the village fairly often on their way to and from the Water Country. This was the first village near the border. No one remembered anyone in particular.

It didn't help her mood that the mayor's house was in her section of the village. She'd gotten the impression from the beginning that they weren't what he'd expected from Konoha ninja. He wasn't overly impressed by their appearance and he knew nothing of their abilities. This was not the type of mission to immediately impress outsiders with their fighting skills since there hadn't been any hint of a fight in the offing.

"Well, well, please come in young ninja—oh wait, Kazuhiko told me that female ninja are called kunoichi—is that right?"

"Yes, but you may call me Hinata, Mayor Kobayashi."

"Hinata? What a pretty name! One hardly expects beauty from a ninja. One thinks of strong, aggressive men when one thinks of ninja, don't you agree?"

"Ah, no, sir. There are quite a few kunoichi in Konoha. Our Hokage is one of the strongest kunoichi in the village."

"Is that so? I would never have imaged that. Fighting just doesn't seem the proper occupation for women. I would never want my daughter to be a ninja."

"It's the opposite in my family. We all become ninja."

"Really? Your father actually wants you to take up such a risky occupation?"

She flushed. On the contrary her father had never thought she was good enough to be a ninja—but she wouldn't tell that to a stranger. "My father is a very powerful man. He expects his children to be just as powerful."

"Even daughters?"

"My father only has daughters."

He shook his head. "I suppose I will never understand ninja. I'm glad I don't live in a hidden village. Well, what can I do for you, young ninja—I mean kunoichi investigator?"

"We've determined that the dead man was a ninja. His hair had been died from brown to black. We're checking with the villagers to see if they noticed a ninja in the village a week ago.

"You could tell all that from that poor man's completely damaged body? That's remarkable! But how?"

She decided Shikamaru wouldn't like her to reveal any of their techniques so she answered him simply, "The ninja arts involve many abilities that ordinary people do not possess. That was why we needed to examine the body ourselves."

"Extraordinary! So had anyone seen a man with these new qualifications?"

"I haven't found anyone yet. Did you notice a stranger who could have been a ninja?" she asked again since the mayor had not yet answered her question.

He stroked his chin. "I don't recall seeing any stranger in the village last week, but I might not have noticed. When I'm thinking I tend not to notice things around me."

"Did you have a lot on your mind last week?"

"Oh, I always have a lot on my mind. Governing a village even one of our small size is not an easy task. I have a great deal of responsibility."

"I can understand that. Well, that's all I needed to ask. Thank you for your time, Mayor Kobayashi."

"Not at all. Anything I can do to help. Will you have a report on your investigation soon?"

"We've only just begun. You'll have to ask my team leader, Shikamaru Nara. He's in charge of the investigation."

"Oh, yes. He was the first one I met. He seems a very intelligent young man. I can see why he's a leader at so young an age. I was a little leery at first about your ability to solve our little mystery, but you've all impressed me with your maturity. I may have misjudged you."

"We've all been trained from an early age to be ninja."

"Is that so? How interesting! You know, I think the entire town council should meet the four of you together. It's only right. They were all instrumental in bringing you to the village. I couldn't have approved the funds by myself. Maybe I'll arrange a dinner to welcome you to the village. I hadn't thought of that before. What do you think?"

"I'm sure that would be very nice," she said not sounding certain at all. "Well, thank you for your time," she said again and made her exit before he could make any other suggestions. She didn't think Shikamaru would enjoy a dinner with all the village dignitaries. He'd probably find it troublesome. She wasn't looking forward to breaking that bit of news to him.

Despondent at the failure of her part of the mission, she headed back to the inn.

* * *

The restaurant and the market were in Choji's section of the investigation. He didn't feel at all guilty when he stopped to purchase a few snacks to sustain him during his research. In fact, it was while he was making his purchases in the market that he received some promising information about their investigation.

"You're one of the young ninja investigators, right? I'm on the village council. My name is Hakuyoh Shinohara," the man operating the outside produce bins was a short, middle-aged man. Choji thought Shikamaru was wrong thinking only half the village was shorter than 175 cm. Practically everyone he'd met so far was shorter than that.

"Yeah, I'm one of the investigators. Nice to meet you."

"I had my reservations about hiring you guys at first, but Mayor Kobayashi insisted. Now that you're here the mayor's the one with the reservations. He thinks you guys are a little young to be handling such a serious job, but I think if you're good enough to be Konoha shinobi, you're good enough for us."

Choji agreed with Naruto that the people in this village were very chatty and nosy, but he thought the chattiness was a good thing. Maybe someone would tell them something interesting by talking too much. So far, though, all he'd heard was talk about themselves. They were too young was the main criticism. Nobody seemed to understand that ninja training started young and some of the best ninja had achieved even greater things than they had by their age. However, it wasn't his job to enlighten the villagers. That would take much too long. He needed to complete his part of the investigation and get back to the inn.

"I'm glad to hear that. Tell me, do you remember a stranger passing through here last week about 175 cm. tall, brown hair, bands on his wrists—possibly a ninja?"

The man stroked his chin. "We get new produce in on Wednesday mornings from the farmers I deal with so that's the day we usually see strangers or infrequent visitors in the village. I don't remember anyone like that, but let me check with my daughter. Maybe she saw someone. Mayura, will you come out here?" he called into the building behind him.

A pretty, young girl came out of the building wiping her hands on her apron. Choji hadn't failed to notice that all the girls he'd seen in this village were pretty. They must have inherited their looks from their mothers, because none of their fathers were particularly handsome.

"Yes, Dad?"

"Last Wednesday, you were minding the store in the morning. Did you notice a stranger in the market?"

"Let me think. Last Wednesday?"

"Or any day early last week. It was probably earlier than Wednesday," Choji added remembering that the man's body had been found on Wednesday morning. He didn't want to limit her memories to one particular day. They didn't know what day the man might have come into the village—if he did at all.

"No stranger came in on Wednesday, but a man did come through Tuesday morning. I'd just opened up. He bought the last of the apples we had in the store."

"What did he look like?" Choji asked excited. Could this be the man?

She sized him up. "He was about your height. His hair was a little darker. He was strong looking and he had a few scars on his face."

"Was he a ninja? Did he have a headband like this one?" Choji pointed to his own headband.

She shook her head. "No, but he wore dark clothes and a vest kinda like one of you guys were wearing. I saw you at the restaurant yesterday."

"Did he say anything? Ask you anything?"

"No. He just took a few apples and asked how much. I told him. He paid me and then he left."

"Was there anything else you noticed about him? What color were his eyes? Where were his scars? Was he wearing bands around his wrists? Did he wear shoes like mine?"

"He was kinda scary. I didn't want to look in his eyes. They were squinty looking. He wore bindings around his wrists and his shoes did look like yours. I did say _'Welcome to Mountain Ridge'_ when he came in, but he just grunted. He seemed impatient so I didn't say anything else."

"What were his scars like? Where were they?"

"He had a long one on his left cheek—from below his eye to his chin. He had another one across his forehead and there was sort of a gouge in his chin. It looked like he'd been in a lot of fights."

"Any other scars?"

"I think there were some on his arms and the back of his hands. I didn't really want to show I was paying him too much attention. I didn't want him to notice."

"Thanks. You've given me some good information. If you think of anything else, let us know at the inn. Okay?"

She smiled at him. "Okay. Who shall I ask for?"

"Choji."

"That's a nice name."

"It's a family name."

"I like it."

"Well, thanks. I've got to be going now,"

"Okay. Bye, Choji."

"Yeah, bye," he waved and left the store. He hadn't seen very many young men around the village. Maybe that's why the girls were so friendly and flirtatious. Anyway, he needed to finish his research and get back to the inn. He wondered if the others had been as successful as he had.

* * *

Shikamaru's end of the village had been short and unrewarding. No one had seen anyone new last week. They'd been more interested in asking him questions than listening to and answering his. He'd cut them off with his usual line of not being able to answer any questions about the investigation so he didn't have to listen to anything tiresome.

He went back to the inn and his room as soon as possible. He figured he'd be the first one back. He'd deliberately chosen the least populated section of the village so he could come back and do some quiet thinking about the investigation. It was harder to think with his team looking at him for signs of genius. That wasn't always possible when there was so little to go on. Besides thinking wasn't a really a spectator sport.

He lay down on his futon and stacked his hands behind his head as he went over everything they'd learned so far. There was so little it didn't take him very long, so he went over it again and again hoping something would occur to him.

He'd been lying there for about twenty minutes surprised he hadn't fallen asleep, when there was a knock on the door. He thought about ignoring it, but it might be Kimi Endoh. She'd have a key and probably wouldn't hesitate to barge right in. He decided to cut her off at the door.

"Coming," he called out.

He put one hand on the door jamb and one on the doorknob, and cracked open the door. He let the door fall wide open when he found himself staring into the dark green fathomless eyes of the only woman who'd ever occupied a more prominent position in his thoughts than his mother.

"Well, if it isn't Shikamaru Nara. When I heard there were Konoha ninja here, I never expected one of them to be you," greeted the sister of the Kazekage of the Village Hidden in the Sand, Temari.


	9. Temari's mission

Elementary, my dear Naruto

IX. Temari's mission

"What are you doing here?" he greeted her gruffly.

She laughed softly. "It's nice to see you, too." She stood there all cocky and attractive one hand on her tilted hip the other holding her oversize fan at her shoulder.

For the first time in his life, Shikamaru felt heat rise in his face. He generally allowed nothing to bother him. He was a master of his emotions. Why was it that Temari was the only one who could possibly catch him off guard?

He cleared his throat. "Sorry about that. I simply find your appearance unexpected. I hadn't thought that far in advance."

"And here I thought nothing could surprise you," she teased.

He was still feeling edgy and off-balance—and he didn't like it. "Well, I haven't seen you in awhile so this is a considerable surprise. You don't come to Konoha for the chûnin exams anymore."

"You noticed? I'm flattered."

He frowned to disguise his unaccustomed feeling of fluster. "That's my job. I'm paid to notice anomalies."

"Now I'm an anomaly. You certainly know how to charm a girl, Shikamaru," she continued her teasing tone enjoying his discomfort. Now that he had finally achieved an interesting age of maturity, she was determined to make their interactions more memorable.

He shrugged. "Sorry. They don't teach us that at the ninja academy."

"Practice should make perfect. Be my guest. You can practice on me all you want," she told him in a huskier voice than usual.

"T-e-m-a-r-i—"he stretched her name out in an exasperated manner. He didn't know how to react to her uncharacteristic behavior. She was acting like—like—like _a_ _girl._ He didn't know whether to be shocked or intrigued.

She sighed. Why were men so stupid? "Fine. Be that way. Must I stand here at the door or can I come in? I've been traveling all day. I'm exhausted."

"Yeah, yeah, sure, come on in." He held open the door and watched her move forward. On her the hip swaying action was more subtle and sensual than it had been with the innkeeper's daughter. He really liked her narrow, black skirt with the suggestive slit. Now suddenly the most apt description in his head for Temari was _sexy_. Maybe it was her flirtatious teasing. She'd never done that before. He'd found it distasteful coming from the females in this village, but from Temari he'd found it oddly alluring. He reached up to rub the back of his neck. He felt as if something tight was trying to cut off his breathing, but there was nothing there except the very loose collar of his vest.

She swung her oversize fan from her shoulder to prop against the wall, and sat down on the only chair in the room. She crossed her legs allowing the slit side to fall open. Her shapely legs were displayed to maximum advantage and she idly swung the propped up slowly one up and down. "Three futons? There are three of you from Konoha here?"

"Ah, four actually," he watched her leg swing. It didn't seem to matter that she wore regulation ninja footwear. His eyes were irresistibly drawn to the very feminine and shapely form barely disguised under her chosen ninja gear. "You know we usually have one kunoichi in the group."

"That's right, you do, don't you." She relaxed against the back of the chair and studied his lanky, loose-limbed figure. He was taller than her brother, Gaara and slimmer than her brother Kankuro, but she liked those differences. She never thought she'd find a guy three years younger and from another hidden village so attractive, but she'd loved the way his mind worked. That had caught her attention from the first time she'd fought him. And his sharp mind still held her interest after all the years she'd known him—and now that he was all grown up she was even more interested. "Is it that blonde waspish team mate of yours?"

"You mean Ino? Ino Yamanaka? No. I'm here with a different sort of team." He shut the door and leaned back against it with his hands in his pockets. He could have sat down on one of the futons, but then he'd be looking up at her. He'd decided she already had too great an advantage on his senses and thoughts to give her a physical one, too. He tried to look and act casual, but he was feeling a tension he'd never felt before.

"Are the two of you a couple yet?" Temari decided not to play any games to find out what she wanted to know. She was more comfortable with the direct approach any way.

"What?" This question hit Shikamaru by even more surprise than anything else she'd said since he'd opened the door. She was the only woman of his acquaintance that could keep him on his toes mentally.

"Don't act so astonished. She struck me as a very possession girl. I could see she was too superficial to find your other team mate—Choji?—palatable, so that only left you."

He laughed much harder than the idea warranted. It released some of his pent up tension. "You've really got the wrong idea. Ino's never been particularly happy with the team she was originally chosen for. Neither Choji nor I have ever measured up to her standards."

She frowned. He was laughing too hard. What was that about? "Oh? Was she one of the girls crazy about that handsome Uchiha boy? I seem to remember a lot of giddy girls hanging around him."

"You noticed that? It was years ago."

"Everybody noticed him. Besides his considerable good looks, there was just something about him—I don't know what it was—but he had a presence. He was impressive."

Shikamaru smiled sourly. So here was another candidate for the now defunct Sasuke Uchiha fan club. Why should he be surprised? She was right. There had been a lot of giddy girls hanging around him back then. "Well, he didn't live up to his promise. As far as I know he's still out there on his own personal mission. He hasn't come back to the village since he left."

She bent her head to hide her smile at the tone of his voice. Was there really someone Shikamaru Nara was jealous of? "My brother, Gaara thought he'd be the major player in the chûnin exams that year. We paid him very close attention. And he was almost worth it. He was the first ninja who ever bloodied Gaara."

"Instead, it was Naruto who surprised everyone."

"That's right. Naruto Uzumaki." This time she smiled openly in a soft, reminiscent way that he found totally irritating. What did that mean? Was she interested in Naruto now?

Shikamaru decided it was time to change the subject. "So what are you doing in the Fire Country?"

"You didn't answer my question, Shikamaru. I won't answer yours until you answer mine. Remember what it was?"

He sighed. "No, Ino's not interested in me. No, I'm not part of any couple. I've got better things to do than get involved with Ino or anyone else," he told her impatiently. Women didn't seem to realize what was important and what wasn't. His lack of a female relationship was supremely unimportant.

She gave him a smile that reminded him of a cat finishing off a bowl of cream. How could she have so many expressions in her smiles? He'd always thought her as rather cold, practical and direct in the past. When had she developed this softer, enigmatic side? "How interesting," she purred softly.

"Hardly. Now answer my question," he demanded impatiently. The timbre of her voice was making his stomach muscles tense.

She wriggled for a more comfortable position in her seat which completely distracted him. His mind went totally blank for a few long seconds as he watched her move. "I think we might be here for the same reason," she told him finally.

He cleared his throat. "Yeah, what reason might that be?"

She laughed softly again. "You're always so cagey. Afraid of giving away Konoha secrets? Maybe I have a few of my own I'm not willing to release to _just_ _anyone_."

He narrowed his eyes and studied her. "Give me a minute. Maybe I can deduce some of those secrets."

"Go right ahead. I'm not worried at all having the great mind of Shikamaru Nara thinking only of me."

And once she'd said that all he could think about was her. How could he think with her in his head so completely? "Stop that!" he ordered gruffly.

She gave him a wide-eyed innocent look. "Stop what?".

"You're flirting with me!" he accused.

"Am I? Really? Imagine that! Is that a forbidden technique?" She couldn't stop teasing him. It actually made her feel good. It had been a long time since she'd wanted to flirt with anyone. There just hadn't been anyone interesting at home. They were either intimidated by her superior mental abilities or impressed by her close relationship with the power structure of the village. Here was one man, she thought, that if he did like her would do so because and despite those very things.

He rubbed his hand over his brow and squeezed his eyes shut momentarily to center himself. Was she simply trying to confuse him with her flirtatious behavior? Did she really think she could keep her mission a secret from him with those tactics? Or was there something else going on here that made him feel curiously disturbed? "Is it something in the air or the water?" he pondered aloud.

"What was that?" She looked at him blankly. That was an unexpected response.

He removed his hands from his pockets and crossed them loosely over his chest. "Like you, every female in this village has been flirting with us since we got here. I'm wondering if it's a virus. Maybe you're infected, too."

She glared at him thinking once again that men were so stupid. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm serious, Temari. I don't get this kind of reaction from women as a rule—and never from you. Since we arrived here yesterday we've had half a dozen young women fluttering their eyes, wiggling their hips and making all kinds of suggestive remarks. It isn't natural," he said darkly. Although this was a genuine observation he'd made, he was also partly trying to find out why she was behaving in the same way. It didn't seem natural in either case, but he hoped there was a good explanation for her behavior.

"You really _are_ serious."

"Naturally."

"Well, I haven't been in the village long enough to witness any aberrant behavior on behalf of the female denizens, so I can't answer for them."

"What about your own behavior?"

"I hardly think I'm on the same level as the females of this village. You'll have to draw your own conclusions. But, Shikamaru?" she paused to get his attention.

"Yes?"

"I have most definitely been flirting with you. Read what you want into that." She no longer sounded flirtatious or sexy, but he found her blunt statement just that. However, he wasn't sure how to respond. He was literally thrown for a loop. So in order to give himself time to stew over this new and interesting development, he changed the subject again.

"You're on the track of a Sand ninja, aren't you?"

She sighed and straightened up. All the fun and games were over. They were now getting down to business. "Maybe."

"You didn't come here alone, did you?"

"No, I brought a chûnin candidate with me."

"In other words—a genin."

"Those words hardly do him justice. He's the most promising genin we've had in quite some time—since Gaara, I'd say. And he's only 11 years old."

"That's it? You only brought one 11 year old genin with you?" he asked in disgust.

"He's really very talented," she pouted attractively. What was it about Shikamaru that made her want to try out all those feminine tricks that she'd never even considered using on anyone else?

"So what? He's still only 11. You should have better back up than that, Temari. You're the Kazekage's sister. Don't they value you enough to provide you with a few more ninja—at least of chûnin level?" he asked sternly. He shouldn't worry about her. She wasn't his responsibility. But how stupid could the Sand Village be to send her out tracking that big ninja on her own? The fact that he was dead should mean that he wasn't a very skilled ninja, but until he knew the quality of the man's assassin he couldn't make that assumption.

"Are you worried about me?"

"What if I am?"

"That's really very sweet of you, Shikamaru, but I can handle myself." She really was touched by his concern. She didn't consider it a slight on her abilities. She thought it was the concern of someone who actually cared about her—maybe not as much as she'd like him to, but it was a start.

"Maybe you can." He considered her objectively. "My guess is that you're not supposed to bring him back, but just track him—find out where he's going. Am I right?"

"Track who?" she asked innocently.

He chopped his hand in the air impatiently. "We've already established that. You've been following a renegade Sand ninja, but you're over a week behind him. What took you so long?"

She glared at him. "It isn't easy when you don't learn right away who he is, why he left and you have absolutely no idea where he's going. Even the great Shikamaru Nara would have taken a few days to figure it out."

He gave her a genuine smile now that he had her on the defensive. It wouldn't be good for his ego to allow Temari to retain a superior position for too long. He realized that whatever relationship they might have in the future, it wouldn't last long if he allowed her to set rules and control the game. He was the type of guy who usually followed the path of least resistance, but that didn't mean he wanted to be bossed around too much. But he thought he was smart enough for that not to happen even with a girl as shrewd as Temari.

How strange! It suddenly occurred to him that he was thinking of Temari and the future in the same train of thought. When did that happen?

"So who is he and what did he do?"

"You mean you haven't figured that out yet? You astound me, Shikamaru," she said truculently.

"I haven't even begun to astound you, yet. Now stop playing word games with me, Temari. What's going on?"

She uncrossed her leg, bent over, set her elbows on her knees and rested her chin in her cupped hands. "His name is Hidekatsu. He was an average chûnin—nothing special—but he thought he was. He was becoming more and more disgruntled with the types of missions he was offered. He complained all the time. His team mates didn't even want to be with him anymore. He was finally relegated to guard duty. Of course, that made him even more grouchy and belligerent."

"Yeah, I've met those types before. We've had our share of renegade ninja. It's more unfortunate when some of the best ninja become turncoat."

"In this case, it turned out to be bad enough. He was set to guard our museum. We have a number of valuable and rare exhibits in the museum. My family had allowed several relics to be displayed there."

"So this is personal?"

She threw him a quick look. He'd figured it out already? She really did admire his mind. And how nice that it was housed in an attractive frame, too. She didn't consider herself exactly shallow, but beauty _and_ brains were a difficult combination to resist. "That's right. He almost killed the museum curator and stole a valuable relic that belonged not only to the Sand Village in general, but my family in particular. I couldn't care less about him, but I must have that relic returned."

"I see. You've provided me with a very important piece to the puzzle."

She frowned at him. "What puzzle?"

"The reason why your renegade ninja was found dead."

"Dead? He's dead? What about my relic?" she asked excitedly.

"This is the first I've heard about a relic. I was sent to this village to investigate a mysterious death. No one mentioned a relic."

"Why mysterious?"

"I'll tell you about it." Now that Temari was acting like her old self, Shikamaru left the door and sat down on the futon closest to her. He no longer needed the superiority of height to deal with her in this mode. He crossed his legs and rested his elbows on his knees mimicking her posture.

"Last week, an old man walking into the village from the south came across a dead man lying to the side of the road. There was a small stab wound near his heart which would certainly explain his death, but there were other circumstances that made his simple death anything but. The man's face, hands, feet and other parts of his body had been chemically burned. He had very little blood on his clothes, they appeared new and a bad fit. Oh, and his hair had been dyed from brown to black. The villagers had no clue how to investigate this death so they sent to Konoha for help."

"How do you know he's Hidekatsu? It sounds like he's barely identifiable."

"Well, one member of my team has a blood line limit that determined the man had a fully developed chakra channel. This led us to believe he was a ninja."

She nodded her head. "That makes sense. Still what makes you think it's Hidekaktsu?"

"Well, that is an assumption on my part. You're looking for a ninja and I've found a ninja—that sounds like a match made in heaven—wouldn't you say?"

"It would certainly be nice if they were one and the same person. Half my job would be complete." She sighed. "I suppose I'll have to look at the body."

"There isn't very much to see. I don't even think his mother would be able to recognize him."

"Well, Daiki and I will just have to do our best."

"Daiki? Is that your 11 year old genin?"

"Of course. I told you I'm only traveling with one man."

"Man? Yeah, right. Where is this little man now?"

"He's checking us into this place. I told him to wait in his room until I discovered who these other ninja are. Where's your team?"

"Actually, they're out canvassing the village with the new information we uncovered. If no one remembers seeing a ninja here in the last week, then I'll have to assume he never came into this village."

"Where do you look from here?"

"We'll search around the village. There are farms in the area. Maybe the unknown ninja's destination was somewhere close to but outside the village."

"Maybe he was just randomly robbed," she suggested despondently. If that were the case she never might recover her relic unless it was sold someplace nearby.

"What is this relic? How will I recognize it if I should come across it?"

"Well, it's quite valuable. It's made of ivory, finely gilded and studded with precious and semi-precious stones."

"You're holding something back, Temari." He studied her face shrewdly. "What shape is this relic of yours?"

She blushed. "It's a fan, okay? But it's not a weapon. It's rather small—only about 20 cm. long."

"So, this mission is very personal."

"That's right. It's mine! I'm the only one in the family who uses fans. That fan was only on loan to the museum. I intended to reclaim it one day. It's supposed to have some special properties. I don't know what kind, but I always intended to find out. Now it's gone!" Her voice sounded fierce and teary at the same time.

This was another side of Temari he'd never seen before. She was a woman of many surprises—each one more intriguing then the last. He reached forward and placed his hand over one of hers' tensely gripping her knee. "Don't worry, Temari. I'll help you find it. I'm incredibly intuitive. I just know our missions are one and the same."

She raised her head and smiled right into his eyes. "Thank you. With the great Shikamaru Nara on the case, we can't fail."

"You bet." He squeezed her hand and fell into those beautiful, impossibly dark green eyes of hers. "Temari," he murmured and leaned towards her.

She leaned down towards him. They were a breath away from an entirely new dimension to their relationship when the sound of his name being called and a loud series of raps sounded at the door.

He pulled away and jumped to his feet. "Damn it!" he swore with a hiss. He heard Hinata's voice call, "Hello? Shikamaru? Choji? Naruto?" It was funny when Naruto and Hinata were interrupted at inconvenient moments, but it was anything but humorous when it happened to him.

He reached the door in two strides, but turned back to Temari before opening it. "We've got some unfinished business to attend to later."

She gave him a wide, inviting smile. "Oh yeah," she promised him. "We definitely do."


	10. A meeting of minds

Elementary, my dear Naruto

X. A meeting of minds

The door seemed to burst open.

Hinata hesitated and blinked into the shaded room. "Shikamaru?"

"Yeah, yeah, come on in," he said impatiently and waved her into the room. He stood aside and closed the door quickly after she came through. He decided to saunter causally back to his futon to sit down again since it already had an obvious dent from his rear end. At least he intended all his actions to be casual and normal as he made sure not to sit as close to Temari as he had been. Of course, it had been anything but normal or casual with Temari in this room only moments before, but nobody except himself and Temari needed to know that.

Hinata hovered by the door her eyes slowly becoming accustomed to the shaded room. She started in surprise when she realized the person sitting comfortably in the room's only chair was not Naruto or even Choji. "Oh—I—ah—am I interrupting?" She was suddenly aware of a strangely charged atmosphere in the room.

"No!" Shikamaru answered a little too forcefully.

"Yes," Temari said at the same time in her usual abrupt manner.

"Oh," Hinata took a small step back and felt behind her for the door latch. She was definitely interrupting something—of what nature she wasn't sure, but she didn't feel at all welcome. She opened the door and quickly backed out. "I—ah—should go—I've got—ah—something—"

"Hinata!" Shikamaru called out before she got away. He felt completely out of his depth in this situation due to Temari's rudeness. Hinata's timing couldn't have been worse. So much had been left undone and unsaid that it seemed to hang in the air. Hinata was absorbing every ounce of the tension in the room that seemed almost tangible—if tension could be seen, felt and measured like water. He had to defuse the situation before the rest of his team showed up—not that he expected them to notice anything unusual. They weren't the two most sensitive guys to this sort of thing probably due to a lack of experience or simple obtuseness. He just had to get Temari to behave more civilly—if that were even possible. She was a most difficult woman. He knew that he really should weigh that factor more carefully before he traveled further down that road

"Hinata!" Naruto exclaimed as she backed into him. He put his hands on her shoulders to keep her from tripping over him. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing—I—I—" she stammered and turned her head to look up at him. She was so glad to see him. She didn't feel so completely out of place any more.

"Naruto! Bring Hinata back in here with you. I've been waiting for you guys to show up. We've got a lot to discuss. Have you seen Choji?"

"Not yet." Naruto kept his hands lightly on Hinata's shoulders as he gently pushed her back into the room before him and kicked the door closed with his foot. What was going on? He stood behind her still lightly holding onto her and leaned against the door as his eyes also needed to adjust from the bright, sunny outdoor light to the darkened room.

"Sit down, Hinata. Relax. You remember Temari of the Sand Village, don't you?" Shikamaru spoke quickly to forestall any questions.

"Yes, of course. Hi," Hinata still didn't feel welcome, but with Naruto behind her and his hands still supporting her she felt better able to handle the underlying hostility she sensed from Temari.

"I remember you. You're one of the Hyuga clan," she said dismissively after looking her over. She'd noticed the eyes immediately. "Hey, Naruto," her voice changed from cool to warm when she greeted him.

"Temari! Wow, you're here, too? How's Gaara? He's okay, isn't he?" Naruto reacted favorably to the sound of her voice. He could almost make her out now. She hadn't changed much in all the years he'd known her. If anything she seemed more arrogant and haughty, but that had never bothered him. He knew that underneath that slick, hard surface was a very caring woman.

"He's doing very well. We hadn't heard you were back from that long mission overseas. You should come for a visit sometime. You haven't been back since the big rescue from the Atakasuki three years ago."

"Yeah, I should do that. I'd like to see Gaara again," he agreed. He and Gaara had a strange relationship. They were bound by a similar childhood due to a similar malady. He couldn't say they were exactly friends, but they were more than acquaintances. Their militant history had somehow connected them in a positive way. From their battle on that fateful day of the attack on Konoha by Orochimaru and the Sand ninja during their third chûnin exams, Gaara had developed into a very caring leader. Naruto admired that. It would be interesting to visit him when there wasn't a mission involved. He'd never done that before.

Shikamaru listened to this exchange with growing irritation. He didn't know why Naruto's easy acquaintance with Temari and her family should bother him, but it did—a lot. He found himself scowling at Naruto more darkly than usual.

"So this is the member of your team with the useful blood limit?" Temari again looked Hinata over coolly. Even without noticing Naruto's possessive attitude towards the girl, Temari already felt less hostile now that she'd met the kunoichi of the group. She remembered Hinata from the chûnin exams they'd all taken together about six years ago. She'd dismissed her as too timid and unconfident to be a threat even with the Hyuga clan's talents. Observing her now, she believed that her opinion had no reason to change even when she was considering her in a more personal rivalry.

"Yeah. She's the one."

"You know about our mission? You told her?" Naruto asked looked from one to the other in surprise. Didn't Shikamaru tell them not to discuss the mission with anyone?

He steered Hinata over to his futon to sit down. Since Shikamaru was sitting comfortably why shouldn't they? After she was seated, he settled himself beside her not even thinking about how this might look to the other two. Fortunately for him they had every reason to avoid any attention to personal relationships among the team members.

"I found it necessary to brief her," Shikamaru explained shortly.

"Our missions may have something in common," Temari added.

"Like what? A dead ninja?"

"Among other things."

Shikamaru was surprised at Naruto's quick perception, but he didn't say so. There was no reason for Temari to know that this was a training mission for the chûnin trio. At least that could remain Konoha business. "Why don't we wait until Choji returns to go into everything? That way we don't have to tell things twice."

"Suits me. I don't have much to tell anyway."

"I suppose I should bring Daiki in on this meeting," Temari stood up and sauntered to the door. "Take care of my _weapon_," she said to Shikamaru with a sexy emphasis in the last word just for him. "I'll be right back."

Shikamaru watched her every move until she exited the room. He shook his head when she was gone as if to clear it, but it did no good. She was completely in his head now for better or worse. He'd just have to wait and see which way fortune would lean.

"Who's Daiki?" Naruto asked. He'd been sitting cross-legged, but now he stretched out his legs and leaned back to rest on his elbows. He could see Hinata better this way, because she had room to turn sideways to look at him.

"Her genin team mate."

"She just brought _one genin_ on her mission? That doesn't seem like a smart idea."

"That's just what I told her, but you know Temari better than I do. She seemed to think she alone was as capable as our entire four member team," he said dryly.

Naruto laughed. "That sounds just like her. Is that dead guy a Sand ninja?"

"I'm not sure, but it seems likely. Until we learn more, we'll assume there's a connection between the Sand Village and this ninja. It seems too great a coincidence that she'd be pursing a renegade ninja and we'd find a dead one."

"I wonder if there's some way for her to identify him that we wouldn't know?"

"She's going to have a look at the body. But unless she knows of something really small that the killer missed covering up, I don't think she'll be able to tell. The guy didn't even have a gold tooth left for us to find."

"Tell me about it. I don't ever want to study a dead man that closely again. Let the medics keep that job."

"With any luck you won't have to. This was a worse case scenario if ever there was one."

The door opened without a knock.

"Hey, why's it so dark in here? Were you taking a nap, Shikamaru?" Choji demanded when he came through the door.

"What if I was? Don't tell me you haven't had a little snack while you were out?"

"What do you _think_? You're the one who assigned me the side of the village with the market _and_ the restaurant."

"So you had your brain food. Did it work?"

"Hell, yeah. Wait 'till you hear what I found out."

Shikamaru held up his hand. "Hold that thought, Choji. We've got a few additions to our team. They should be here right about now." As he finished speaking, there was a knock on the door. Choji jumped out of the way as it opened without further ceremony.

"I see the rest of your team has arrived," Temari said as she walked in proceeding a short, skinny boy with messy black hair and black eyes. "Team Shikamaru, this is Daiki. Daiki meet Shikamaru Nara, Hinata Hyuga, Naruto Uzumaki and Choji—?" she looked in askance at him.

"Akimichi. Don't tell me I'm not that memorable."

"Oh, I remember you. You have some impressive skills. I'm just no good with names." She reclaimed her seat in the only chair and waved Daiki to the empty futon that belonged to Choji. While he hesitated Choji parked himself on his futon leaving only a little space for Daiki to perch warily upon. "Shall we get started?" she asked.

"Why don't we give our reports first, then you can tell them what you told me?" Shikamaru suggested firmly. If he wasn't careful this would become Team Temari.

She inclined her head. "I defer to Team Leader Shikamaru."

"We'll do this in order of appearance. I'll go first since I arrived back here first. There's nothing to report on the east side of the village. No one saw anyone who resembled a ninja with brown hair," he summed up succinctly. "Hinata?"

She shook her head. "I had a similar experience questioning the villagers in the south. However," she hesitated. "Mayor Kobayashi lives in the south end of the village. He was home when I stopped there. He—ah—wants to have a welcome dinner for us tomorrow with all the members of the village council."

Naruto groaned. That was one of his worst nightmares come true. He wanted to do anything but socialize with more of these villagers. He'd even be willing to spend all night in the ice house with the stiff than meet more villagers. Maybe Shikamaru would find some way to get them out of that awful dinner without Naruto offering some dire sacrifice to avoid it.

"I take it he's changed his opinion about us again?"

"You seem to have impressed him with your leadership abilities, Shikamaru. He seems completely convinced that we'll solve the village mystery now."

"I wonder how convinced he'd be if he knew how little information we've gathered so far. I know you'd rather not do this, Naruto," he'd heard Naruto's groan and could almost hear his brain churning up avoidance ideas, "but we may have no polite choice in the matter. Let's see what tomorrow brings. Maybe I'll find a good reason to send our regrets for this dinner after tomorrow's investigations."

"Naruto, you can usually get along with anybody. What's wrong with this village?" Temari asked curiously.

"Everything!" he exclaimed. "These people think we're some kind of freaks. They won't stop asking questions and staring at us. Plus the girls keep flirting with us—all the time. It's weird."

"Shikamaru told me the same thing. It seems a little strange that three single guys would complain when a few girls flirt with them," Temari responded dryly.

"Yeah, especially when they think Naruto and Hinata are newly weds," Choji chortled.

"Shut up, Choji! That was just a mistake. Nobody really thinks that. You see, Temari, this village seems to be a honeymoon spot—that's all," Naruto said hotly. "They see a man and woman together and immediately think they're a couple."

"That's right. The innkeeper told me all about this honeymoon business when we arrived. He was, also the one who told me there were other ninja here. He was very authoritative on how to recognize ninja—almost as if he'd been coached."

"He had been in a way. We were asked a lot of questions about ninja. We answered the obvious ones."

"Don't feel too embarrassed, Naruto. The innkeeper thought Daiki was my son at first. But I set him straight immediately. I don't think he'll be as curious about us anymore," Temari said with some satisfaction. She could stop grass from growing with one of her cold, haughty stares.

"Okay. We're getting off topic here," Shikamaru interrupted. "Anything else to report, Hinata? No? Your turn, Naruto."

"I've got nothing—except that constable's a real _asshole_," Naruto said bluntly.

"Naruto!" Hinata admonished softly.

"Hey, I just call 'em as I see 'em, Hinata. I was the unlucky one to have his house in the north end. All that jerk did was argue with me. He barely answered my questions. He definitely doesn't want us here and I don't think he wants this investigation at all. I'd really, really like for him to be the killer. How about it, Shikamaru?"

He smiled amused at a thought he was in total agreement with. "You bring me the right evidence and I'll see what I can do."

Naruto let out an exasperated breath. "Evidence is the one thing we don't seem to have in this case. As far as I can see it still could be anyone—victim and killer."

"Hey, don't forget about my turn," Choji demanded. "I've got more to report than the rest of you."

"Don't worry. I saved the best for last," Shikamaru told him.

"Damned right, you did! I don't have much, but I did prove your theory that the guy was in the village. A girl at the market saw him last Tuesday morning. He bought some apples from her," he announced triumphantly.

"Way to go, Choji!" Naruto cheered.

"What else did she have to say about the man?"

"She thought he was scary, so she didn't look at him too much, but she did say he had scars on his face—a long one on his left cheek—from below his eye to his chin. He had another one across his forehead and there was sort of a gouge in his chin," he unconsciously quoted the girl exactly. "She also had the impression that he had some scars on his arms and the back of his hands."

"Daiki, does that sound like Hidekatsu?" Temari asked.

"Yeah, it does sound like him." Those were the first words he'd spoken to any of them. His voice was low and unemotional.

Shikamaru formed a steeple his hands. "Excellent. Good work, Choji. We now have a common goal."

"But what was he doing here? Why were you after him, Temari?" Naruto asked.

She told them exactly what she'd told Shikamaru earlier about the renegade Sand ninja, Hidekatsu. Then she described the artifact she was seeking, but in even more loving detail than she had earlier. "It's a fan about 20 cm. long and intricately carved of ivory. The handle is gold and other parts of it are gilded. Several precious and semi-precious stones embellish the handle and base of the fan. There was an emerald, a ruby, a sapphire, an amethyst, a peridot, a garnet, a topaz plus several diamonds—varying from a ½ to a full caret."

"Wow! It sounds valuable," Naruto exclaimed.

"It may be, but that's not why it's important to me."

"It sounds very beautiful," Hinata added softly.

"That's not why it's important either, but thank you. It is a beautiful piece."

"Well, then why's it so important besides the obvious?"

"Because it belongs to my family—to me. That's why. I'm the only one in the family who uses fans. That fan is mine. Gaara and Kankuro agree. I want it back."

"Man, now we've got to go around the village all over again and ask them about this missing fan," Naruto complained.

"No, Daiki and I will do that tomorrow after we take a look at the body," she said firmly. "It sounds like Hidekatsu, but Daiki will be able to tell for sure."

"Well, if we don't have to check the village again—what's our next step, Shikamaru?"

His hands were still in steeple form as he thought aloud. "So he was only seen on the west side of the village. My guess is that he came in from that side to buy food and left the same way. That would mean that this village was never his ultimate destination. So if he didn't have to go through the village then he came and went from the west because that was the direction of his true destination."

"But he was found outside the south entrance. How do you explain that?"

"Good question, Naruto. I don't have an explanation—yet. That may simply be another piece of deception by the killer. For tomorrow, I think that we'll each go outside the village taking the same direction we took today. We'll go out about 3 km. and ask questions at any dwelling along the road. After that, I want Hinata to cover the area between the south and west, Choji will cover west to north, Naruto will cover north to east and I'll cover east to south. We'll report back here after we've covered our respective territories."

"What if we get no results?"

"Then we'll go out further. If that ninja came into this village someone along his path has to know something if only what direction he was headed. We've got two things to ask about now—a description of the ninja and the fan. If he was killed because of the fan we'll find out. Something that valuable would probably be sold not retained. We'll head to the nearest large city if we get no answers here. We'll keep looking as long as we can. I will need to make a report to the Hokage if we're taken too far afield."

"I understand. I'm grateful for any help you can give me," Temari told him sincerely.

"I think it best not to let the villagers know of your personal interest. They may decide the problem's all yours and none of theirs," Shikamaru warned. "I'd rather that they know as little as possible about our investigation until we have all the answers. I still haven't ruled anyone here out as a suspect."

"It may well come to that if we can't link Hidekatsu to this village for any reason other than to purchase apples. I'll contact Gaara and ask him to officially ask your Hokage to retain you for this mission if we find no answers here. You've already put in so much work, I think he'll approve." She had ulterior motives for keeping Team Shikamaru on the case, but her brother had no need to know that.

"Well, then, we'll return to our investigation tomorrow. In the meantime—"

"In the meantime, I intend to take advantage of the hot springs," Temari interrupted him. She stood up. "Hinata, why don't you join me on the female side? We'll leave these guys to do whatever they want, but I would really love a nice long soak in warm water."

Hinata warily agreed since Temari seemed suddenly insistent for her company. She spared Naruto a worried glance before following Temari outside.

As the women left, two sets of male eyes, one blue and one black, followed them from the room. Both had very similar thoughts in their heads that revolved around the female side of the hot springs and the two young women who would be bathing there.


	11. Hot springs confessions

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XI. Hot springs confessions

**Conversations that might be heard on the male side of the hot springs.**

"Man, this was a great idea. Why didn't we do this last night?"

"Maybe you wanted to come here with your wife first."

"Damn it, Choji, will you just drop it already! It wasn't funny then and it isn't funny now."

"Geez, when did you lose your sense of humor?"

"The minute I walked into this village."

"It's not that bad. There are some really cute girls around here. I never get this much attention ordinarily."

"Not interested."

"Yeah, your wife might object."

Choji—!"

"Just ignore him, Naruto. Haven't you learned the first law of harassment yet? He'll keep needling you as long as he gets a rise out of you. You're too easy."

"Oh yeah, _you_ can say that. He's not doing it to _you_. I'm surprised you're not jumping on the bandwagon. Don't you guys usually tag team?"

"Good point. This _is _an excellent opportunity to zap you without upsetting Hinata. However, Choji's doing such a great job I don't think he needs any help from me."

"Thank you sensei, but I'd never resent deferring to a master."

"No, no really, my excellent student, I have nothing to add. After all, if Hinata has no problem with his flirting, who am I to object?"

"Very funny. It's not me. When have you ever seen me flirting? These girls act as if they haven't seen a single man in years."

"Oh yeah—that reminds me—Shikamaru, Naruto's on to something there—have you seen any younger men around this village? All I've seen are middle-aged and old men."

"Now that you mention it, I don't believe I have."

"Don't you find that odd?"

"Hey, maybe that's why all the girls are flirting with us all the time."

"Brilliant deduction, Naruto. I wonder where all the young men are? All things considered, there should be some around here. Maybe Temari can subtly question the villagers about that tomorrow when she asks about her fan. You guys can add that to your questions if you find any dwellings in your search area."

"Yeah, subtle. I can do that."

"Sure you can, Naruto, but you can't just ask '_Where are all the young guys around here?'_" That's not subtle."

"Like I'd do that! You're so smart—how would you ask them, Choji?"

"Well, I might say _'What's a pretty girl like you doing by yourself? You should have all the young guys hanging around?'_"

"Good stuff, Choji. Just be careful you don't come back engaged."

"Yeah, Choji. But if you do, I know a great honeymoon spot. It's got a terrific hot springs."

"Sounds like you just found your sense of humor again, Naruto."

"Then why aren't you laughing? Hey, Shikamaru, maybe that's why that ninja was killed."

"Why is that? No sense of humor?"

"No, I don't mean that! Maybe because he wouldn't get chummy with one of the village girls? Because he was too young? Because he wasn't young enough? I don't know. You're the great thinker—you tell me which one fits."

"He wasn't that young."

"That's right you knew him, didn't you Daiki—how young wasn't he?"

"Well, he was almost thirty."

"That might seem old to you, but from my point of view not yet being thirty is still young."

"You know he might not even be the same guy."

"How many guys have you seen that have those same scars?"

"I don't pay that much attention. Practically every ninja I know has scars. Though that Hidekatsu sounds pretty messed up."

"Yeah, he almost sounds as bad as Ibiki."

"Ibiki earned his scars by being a tough ass ninja. How did this Hidekatsu guy get his scars? Eh, kid?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but I don't think he got many of them on missions."

"You sound like you know more than you're telling, Daiki. Could this information shed some light on our investigation?"

"I don't know. He—ah—I heard he gambled and he—ah—wasn't good about paying his debts."

"Well, well, now we have a clear cut reason for his theft of that fan. The man needed money."

"Duh. Wasn't that obvious?"

"Nothing should be obvious. I throw the word _assume _around a lot, but I actually never really assume anything. I still keep all my options open. I'm making audible assumptions to help you guys channel your thoughts into worthy paths. Stealing that fan could net the man a nice sum of money in either of two ways: A. selling it himself or B. stealing it for someone else. Both of those options are still open until we have more evidence."

"What's it matter which one it is?"

"I don't know yet, but I think knowing may get us one step closer to his killer."

"This is way over my head. If the Fifth wants me to think like you do she's in for a major disappointment."

"Don't count yourself out yet, Naruto. You're doing alright. You, too, Choji. I might reach the conclusions quicker, but I think you all would get there eventually. However, this is a moot point since you know as much as I do right now."

"I'll never believe that, but thanks for the encouragement. My brain hurts. I haven't got a clue anymore what I know and what I don't know."

"I've been thinking about a few things I'd like to know. Tell me Daiki, why does Temari think you'll be able to identify the body tomorrow? Maybe you didn't hear that his face, hands, feet and other areas of his body were chemically burned. There's practically nothing left to identify."

"I still think I'll be able to know if it's Hidekatsu."

"How come? Does it have something to do with your kekkei genkai?"

"How do _you_ know I have a kekkei genkai?"

"Temari said you were as talented as Gaara at the same age. I don't think they'd try demon possession again so I'm assuming you've got a kekkei genkai."

"It's not polite to ask me that—and it's not the ninja way for me to simply tell you."

"Smart kid. Temari's taught you well. I guess I'll just have to wait for the chûnin exams to find out what your talent is."

"If I only have one."

"Arrogant kid, too. You're definitely Temari's student. So what's this special ability you have that will allow you to know if that dead ninja's yours. Come on, you can tell us if it's got nothing to do with your kekkei genkai."

"I guess it'll be okay if I tell you. Hidekatsu was my elder brother."

"You're kidding?"

"Of course not! I wouldn't joke about that. He was disinherited by my father when he was a teenager. It made him very angry. I only saw him sometimes around the village."

"What happened? Didn't he inherit the kekkei genkai?"

"What makes you ask that?"

"A talented child is rarely disinherited. Even bad behavior is overlooked for talent. If nothing else they would have kept him under control and arranged a marriage to produce more talented children. I've seen those special families operate."

"What are you talking about, Shikamaru?"

"Clan life. That's usually the way it works. No family allows their blood limit to go out of the family. Lucky for me, although my family has special jutsu's that work best for us they aren't genetically passed on."

"I never thought about what it would be like to be a member of a special clan."

"It can't be easy especially if you don't inherit the blood limit. Isn't that right Daiki?"

"I don't know. I never thought about it before, either. I think Hidekatsu had more problems than just that, though. Since he wouldn't be accepted as the head of the family, he didn't behave properly towards the family. I think that was the biggest problem—the reason he was completely disinherited."

"Well, I'm sorry if the dead guy does turn out to be your brother. But we'll do our best to find his killer if that's any consolation to you."

"I—I don't know. It depends on what happened. I—I'm afraid he might have brought his death on himself. I heard—others said—he wasn't a very nice person."

"That'll be a tough thing to find out, kid. Hey, don't cry."

"I'm not! That's just—just steam from the springs—that's all."

"Yeah, okay, kid, my eyes are steamy, too. You know, it's too bad when you have a rotten apple in the family. I know a little something about that—not first hand, but from a friend of mine. I can tell you about a guy who used to be a teammate of mine. His situation with his older brother was even worse than yours. He's the only member of the Uchiha clan left alive and I'll tell you why—"

* * *

**Conversations that might be heard on the female side of the hot springs.**

"I think I hear the pitter patter of your team mates large feet hitting the water on the other side. The wooden fence they've erected to separate the springs may block the view, but not the sounds from the other side. I knew they'd follow my excellent example. I just hope they brought Daiki with them. He could use some relaxation."

"I can hear the splashing and the rumble of voices, but nothing that they're saying."

"That's probably a good thing. At least if they're over there they can't be peeking in at us."

"What do you mean? _Naruto—they_ would never do that!"

"Don't be so naïve. How do you think he learned that sexy jutsu of his?"

"I never really thought about it."

"Well, he had to see a naked woman some time—and a very well-developed, shapely one at that. Some bathhouses aren't very well designed. If someone really wants to get a look at the other side, they can do it quite easily."

"Oh my!"

"What about that teacher he had? I've heard some wicked things about him."

"_Kakashi sensei_!?"

"No, no—the other one—the old one."

"_Jiraiya sensei_?"

"That's the one. Doesn't Naruto call him _perverted sage_? I think that epithet says it all."

"Oh my! I have heard him call Jiraiya sensei that sometimes. It never occurred to me why."

"Hey, don't let it worry you. That's just the way guys are. Big ones, little ones, old ones, young ones—they're pretty much the same."

"Are they? Oh my."

"You know, I really do remember you now. I recognized the eyes immediately, but I hadn't actually remembered you. You did your best not to stand out. It was your cousin I remembered best. You fought him in the chûnin exams that first year—same blood limit, same fighting styles—that was rough. What _was_ his name?"

"Neji."

"Oh yeah, that's right. He was very impressive—until he fought Naruto. As I remember, that had been one of the big upsets of the exams."

"It was unexpected."

"I remember Naruto getting all dramatic after your defeat. I thought he was all talk back then—just a flashy, cocky, braggart, but he sure proved me wrong."

"I don't remember any of it. I was unconscious at the time."

"Someone must have told you. The way Naruto dipped his hand in your blood and swore vengeance—if it had been anyone else all the girls would have swooned at the drama. But Naruto didn't impress many girls back then, did he?"

"No, not too many."

"Did he impress _any_ of them?"

"Yes."

"You?"

"I've always been impressed by Naruto's courage and inspired by his failure to admit defeat."

"Have you now? Did you see his match against your cousin, Neji?"

"Only a part of it. I passed out during the match. I hadn't healed completely."

"Too bad. It was a good fight. I don't imagine your cousin gets his comeuppance very often. So you must have missed my match with Shikamaru, too?"

"Yes, I missed most of the matches."

"Shikamaru was rather impressive himself, despite the loss. I'm not sure I could beat him now. Luckily Sand and Leaf are allies so that won't be put to the test. So, what's going on between you and Naruto?"

"_W—what_?"

"Don't try to deny it. I saw the two of you together. Something's going on."

"No—I—it isn't really—there's nothing."

"You're not going out?"

"No, we're not."

"I can't tell if you're blushing since you're flushed from the springs. You blush a lot. I remember that about you. So are you blushing because the idea upsets you or excites you?"

"Th—that's a very _personal _question."

"You bet it is. I think of Naruto just like I would my brothers. I don't want to see him get hurt."

"I would _never_ hurt Naruto!"

"Does that mean you care about him?"

"Oh my. That's an even more intrusive question."

"Hey, if I don't ask directly I'll never get an answer. If you don't have the nerve to say it just nod your head."

"Yes."

"Yes, what? Yes, you'll nod your head or yes you care about him?"

"Yes, yes, yes! I care about him—okay?"

"You don't have to get mad. It's okay. We can change the subject now. What are you and Naruto doing on Shikamaru's team?"

"The—ah—Hokage thought we were the best ones to handle this assignment."

"That's a nice noncommittal answer. Am I trespassing on Konoha business?"

"I don't know. Maybe. You'll have to ask Shikamaru."

"I just might do that. Have you been on many missions with him?"

"Shikamaru?"

"Yeah."

"Not too many. Not in a while. We're usually with our original teams. But Naruto's been gone for over a year and I've been recuperating from my last mission. This is my first assignment since then."

"Not much fighting so far, is there?"

"No. It's mostly been analyzing clues."

"Shikamaru should be good at that. Well, you'll make up for it when we find Hidekatsu's killer and my fan. Anyone who can kill a ninja with just a small stab in the heart must be a formidable enemy."

"How will you be certain the dead man is your Sand ninja?"

"Don't worry we have our ways of finding out. Tell me—what do you think of Shikamaru as a team leader?"

"He's very intelligent. I never realized just how intelligent he was until this mission."

"That was obvious when he made chûnin. Aren't you about the same age? Haven't you known him for awhile?"

"Well, I've known him since ninja school. He never acted as if he were smart while we were in school. He flunked a lot of tests. He was always goofing off with Choji, Kiba and Naruto. He fell asleep in class a lot, too. I just never saw this side of him in ninja school."

"So that's what he was like in school? Very interesting. How does he get along with that other team mate of his?"

"You mean Ino Yamanaka? Alright, I guess."

"Just alright?"

"Do you mean—can you mean—_romantically_?"

Of course, that's not what I mean—but just for the sake of argument—are they involved?"

"I don't think so. I never heard that they've even been on a date or anything. I think Shikamaru hangs out with Choji more than anyone."

"What's that supposed to mean? Are you suggesting that they're an item?"

"What?—_No_, of course not! I just mean—they're best friends. That's all. I don't think either one of them has a girlfriend. I think I would have heard about it. One of my team mates—Kiba—hangs out with them sometimes. He's mentioned them—they play pool together. He's never said anything about girlfriends. But if he's been out with anyone, he might have gone out with Sakura. I know Kiba went out with her a few times."

"Sakura? Isn't she Naruto's usual team mate? Didn't he have a thing for her?"

"Yes. Sakura Haruno. She's the prettiest girl from our class in ninja school. Naruto's liked her since then."

"I think he might be over that crush now."

"Do you really? Well, it doesn't matter, he has no choice but to be over it. Sakura's engaged now."

"She is? Who did she manage to land?"

"Rock Lee."

"Oh yeah, the ninja Gaara almost killed. The one who only has taijutsu."

"He's still very formidable with only taijutsu. He certainly looks more muscular than any of the other ninja because of it."

"I haven't seen him for awhile, I'll have to take your word for it. So you think Shikamaru might have dated Sakura Haruno?"

"I don't know for sure. She has dated a lot. It's taken her awhile to get over Sasuke Uchiha, I think."

"Yeah, the Uchihi kid. Before Naruto, he was the only one who'd ever bloodied Gaara. The Leaf's had quite a few interesting ninja. So you don't think Shikamaru's involved with anyone now?"

"No, I don't think so, but I could be the last one to know. I don't usually mix much with the other kunoichi."

"Why? Are you too good for them? There aren't many clans in the Leaf with kekkei genkai. That must give you an elite status."

"No, no, that's not true. I'm no more special than any one else."

"Give me a break, Hinata. Whether you like it or not you were born special. Why don't you just admit it instead of acting like you aren't as good as everyone else?"

"I—I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure you do. If you don't want Naruto riding rough shod over you, you'd better get some backbone. That guy's got enough brass to do any stupid thing he has a mind to. If you want to be the voice of reason he'll listen to, you're going to have to be more assertive and confident."

"Why are you saying this to me?"

"Because I like Naruto and I'd like to see him with someone who can take care of him. He's got no family of his own. He's never had any real structure in his life. If you and he get together—you'll be his only family. He'll need a strong partner."

"I—oh my—I don't know if he—I think you might be wrong about your reading of the situation."

"This isn't my specialty, but I don't think I'm wrong. I've never seen Naruto act like this before. It's nice. I like you better for him than that Sakura Haruno. She's much too obvious and self-absorbed. I'm glad to hear she's been taken out of the game."

"I don't understand what you mean by that."

"Don't worry about it. I must be more tired than I thought. I'm talking too much. I think I'll close my eyes and stay here to soak for a while. You don't have to keep me company. It's okay. I'm fine. You look a little overheated."

"Yes, I think I am getting a little too warm."

"Don't worry about changing out of your robe. It'll be cooler in that robe than changing back into your ninja gear. Just relax. It's perfectly respectable. I heard the guys leave a little while ago. You shouldn't run into anyone you don't want to on your way back to your room."

"Thank you. I guess I'll—ah—see you later."

"Sure."

* * *

Hinata clutched her clothes in her arms as she walked down the path around the pond. The bathrobe provided by the inn was as good as a yukata so she felt no embarrassment about wearing it. It just wasn't the ideal costume to wear in case of attack. As a ninja, she should always be on guard especially on a mission.

The sun was starting its descent and the shadows were getting longer. As she reached the halfway point—the bench that she and Naruto had sat upon earlier—an arm reached out from the shelter of the trees, grabbed her and pulled her into the shadows. She dropped her clothes, started to shout, jerk away and strike out when she heard a well-loved voice say, "Hush—Hinata—it's me."

He'd been lying in wait for her behind the tree. From his vantage point he could see if she crossed the bridge or walked around the pond so he could catch her—and nobody could see him.

"Naruto! You scared me."

"Sorry." He bent down to pick up her clothes and stuffed them back in her arms. "I was hoping you and Temari wouldn't leave together. You were in there a long time. What did you girls talk about? She wasn't mean to you, was she? I know how she can be sometimes, but I think most of it's just surface stuff."

"She treated me just fine. What would you do if she hadn't?" There was a smile in her voice.

He drew her further into the shadows, his hands rested on her shoulders and he pulled her as close as her armful of clothes would allow. She could smell the clean scent of his skin and the warmth of his body. She just wanted to bury her face in his chest, but instead she forced herself to look up into those brilliant blue eyes so very close to hers. Oh, this was heaven!

"Beat her up?" he suggested with a grin.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Probably not. Okay, definitely not. I might get mad at her, but I still like her. I guess my next choice would be to have a little chat with her."

"And tell her to be nice to me?"

"That's right."

"I'd like to be a fly on the wall when you do that. I'd love to see her reaction. Unfortunately, it won't be necessary. I don't think she treats me any differently than she does Choji. It's just you and Shikamaru she's nicest to."

"Shikamaru? Why should she be nice to him?"

"Oh my, I shouldn't have told you that." She clapped a hand over her mouth too late.

"Why? What's up?" He gave her a gentle shake.

"You haven't noticed anything?" Of course, he didn't have the benefit of the grilling Temari had given Hinata about Shikamaru in the hot springs. Nor had he noticed the tense atmosphere when she'd interrupted them before they'd had a chance to recover. It was natural that Temari's interest might not have been as obvious to Naruto as it had become to Hinata.

"Notice what? You're starting to sound like Shikamaru. Don't make me guess, Hinata. I'm tired of trying to figure things out. Just tell me, please."

"Naruto—she likes him."

"Likes? You mean _likes_? She _likes_ him. "

"That's right."

"_Temari and Shikamaru_?" He had trouble wrapping his mind around that one. Not that he could imagine either of them romantically or otherwise involved with anyone at all. "Temari and Shikamaru. How do you know?"

"Oh, different things. The way she looks at him. The way he looks at here. The way they talk to each other. The questions she asked me about him."

Naruto wondered where he was when all that was going on. He never noticed a thing. "What questions?"

"Oh, just things about Shikamaru—things a girl might want to know about a guy she's interested in."

"I can't wait until I see Shikamaru so I can needle him about this. Turnabout is fair play. I intend to do a whole lot of turning about."

"No, no, you mustn't! Naruto, please don't."

"Why not? He and Choji have been on my case all the day. Now, it's their turn—or at least Shikamaru's turn to suffer."

"I'd really rather you wouldn't, Naruto. You can handle it. You're strong enough to withstand their teasing, but I don't think this thing between Temari and Shikamaru is secure enough to withstand your teasing. Please let it alone for now. Please," she put a hand on his chest to add some weight to her plea.

He was really a sucker for flattery—especially from her, because he knew she meant it. "Okay. Since you ask me so nicely, I'll be strong, but I think I need a little reward for my future restraint."

"Oh." She suddenly noticed the pressure of hands on her arms as he pulled her closer. Her heartbeat quickened. She felt very warm now and her breathing shallowed.

"Remember when you pretended to be my girlfriend?"

"Yes," she said breathlessly.

"Let's pretend again," he said softly as he tilted his head and lowered his mouth to close over hers.

As she felt his mouth caress hers, she dropped her clothes so she could put her arms around his neck and press him closer. Was that his heart or hers she felt thudding between them? She couldn't breath, but she didn't want to. She clung to him for support, because her legs seemed to have melted. She felt his tongue against her lips. She gasped at the thrill she felt shooting like a lightning bolt through her body and the ache in a place she'd be too embarrassed to name. Now _this_ was really heaven!


	12. Team Temari at work

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XII. Team Temari at work

Naruto lifted his head and looked down into that amazingly dear face raised up to his. Her beautiful, unique eyes were closed, her cheeks were flushed (of course), and her mouth looked full and inviting from his kiss.

Man, this was going too fast and at the same time not fast enough. He wanted some sort of commitment with Hinata, but the idea also scared him shitless. Yet the thought of no longer being completely alone was too overwhelming to allow him to back away. He was Naruto Uzumaki after all. Nothing scared him. He would especially not allow a sweet, silver-eyed siren to completely defeat him with the power of her hot kisses and soft body.

She might seem like putty in his hands as she clung weakly to his shoulders, but on the inside he was the one really in a puddle at her feet. He wanted everything from her, but would accept whatever she chose to give him. He would start small and ask for the least first.

"Hinata," he said in a husky voice. "I don't want to pretend anymore. I want—Damn it!"

"What? What is it?" Hinata asked blinking up at him in bewilderment still dazed from his kiss.

"Shikamaru. Can't you hear him? He's calling my name. Damn it! He sure knows how to pick his moments. What does he want now?" he hissed in frustration.

"Should we call or go out to him?" Hinata asked resigned to the interruption. She reluctantly lowered her arms and tried to find her land legs. It had been lovely while it lasted.

"No way to either option! Get back here. Don't let him see us. He can wait." He held her tightly against him behind the tree which wasn't such a hardship. He wouldn't giving up so easily. He might not get another alone moment with Hinata on this damned mission. "Good, Temari's found him. Don't even breathe loudly, Hinata. Let's just wait until they leave." They froze leaning together against the tree and practically held their breaths as they waited for Shikamaru and Temari—who just happened to meet up near the bench where they hid—to leave. Unfortunately, it wasn't very quickly.

"Temari, have you seen Naruto?"

"How could you lose him already? You were all together in the hot springs not that long ago."

"He said he forgot something, but he's been gone for awhile."

"Don't worry about him. He'll show up eventually."

"Maybe, but we can't be too careful in this situation. We have no idea what we're up against. One ninja's been killed, I don't want to find another one."

"You're not his father. He's a big boy now. What could possibly happen to him between your room and the hot springs?"

"We're talking about Naruto here," he said dryly.

She laughed. "You're right. What was I thinking? Still, I'm sure he'll turn up just fine. Why don't you put your worry to better use than wasting it on Naruto."

"What do you mean?"

"Walk me to my room? If you think Naruto might be in danger walking alone between your room and the hot springs—what about poor helpless me?"

"Neither one of those adjectives even closely resembles you."

"Which ones do you like better?"

With his hands in his pockets, he looked her over with narrowed eyes. She looked damned cute in the hot springs robe. "Capable."

She pouted. "That's so dull. Can't you do better than that?"

"Strong."

She rolled her eyes. "_Please_."

"Difficult."

"I'm ambivalent about that one."

"Dangerous."

She smiled. "You're getting warmer."

He threw her a very meaty and deserved bone. "Attractive."

"Now that's more like it. Tell me more."

"I'd like to, but not here and not now."

"When?"

"You tell me. I haven't seen you in over a year. When will I see you again that has nothing to do with a mission?"

"I don't know yet, but I'll work on it. Come on and walk me to my room. I bet Naruto will be back in your room before you are."

"Temari, what did I say about time and place?"

"Don't forget—dangerous, here. I think you can protect yourself if I attack you."

"I might not want to—but I will."

"Ah, that sounds very promising." She smiled up at him and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm.

"Don't get any ideas," he told her sternly. "I'm just accompanying you to your door. That's it. Let's go."

"You need to work on your persuasive techniques, Shikamaru. You can practice on me anytime," she said in a teasing voice.

"Troublesome woman," he mumbled as he put his hand over hers holding his arm and practically marched her away.

Naruto gave a sigh of relief. "Finally, they're gone. Hey, Hinata, I think she likes him—and I think he likes her, too."

"What did I tell you? That reminds me of something I want to ask you." He still held her with her hands resting flat against his chest.

"What reminds you?" Naruto asked knowing what the flirtation they'd just witnessed reminded him of, but ladies first.

"How could you—you didn't—did you—actually peek in women's bathhouses to develop your sexy jutsu?"

"What?" This wasn't a question he was expecting. "Where did you get that?" he stalled. He squeezed her tightly in surprised reaction to the question and only relaxed his grip when she gasped in involuntary protest. "Sorry. Why are you asking me that?"

"It's just—Temari mentioned the possibility when we were in the hot springs. I just thought—it just never occurred to me that you'd do that."

He scratched the back of his head and scrunched up his face as he tried to think of a way to answer the question that she'd find acceptable. It never had embarrassed him before, but it's different when the girl you liked calls you on some of your past dubious behavior. "Well, Hinata, it's like this—while I was perfecting that jutsu, I did make a study of the female form purely for research purposes. I tried cloning the kind of women I liked at the time—motherly and grandmotherly types—but they just weren't effective weapons. So naturally, I had to study younger women to get just the right shape to nullify my adult male opponents—more commonly known as '_sensei_.' I needed some advantage over my sensei back then. But I swear to you that that was the extent of my research. Once I'd mastered the most effective form, I ended my more questionable research."

"Really?" She searched his face. It mattered, but then it didn't matter, too. She couldn't imagine anything Naruto did that would affect the way she felt about him. She could forgive him almost anything. She just didn't want to be kept in the dark.

"Really." He wasn't about to mention the adult magazines he'd also used for research and that he looked at occasionally even now.

She smoothed down the edge of the robe crossing his chest. "What about Jiraiya sensei? The one who you call _perverted sage_?"

"What about him?"

"Temari implied that he had a reputation that deserved the adjective perverted. Is he as wicked as she claims?"

That Temari! What a trouble maker! He'd have to think carefully about how he'd get even with her for putting him in this spot. "I started calling him that because at that age that's just what I thought he was. He was old and he liked younger women. But later I discovered that he was doing research himself. He's written a very well-known and popular trilogy. He conducts some questionable research but it's for his writing." Unfortunately, Naruto still thought he was perverted, but he had to defend the guy or be tarred by the same brush.

"What's his trilogy called? Have I ever read it?" she persisted curiously.

"I—ah—don't think you have. I've never read more than a few pages of it myself. I thought it was boring."

"Surely, you must know the name of it?"

"I—ah—don't remember."

"Naruto—you have a guilty look on your face. What aren't you telling me?"

"Not a thing, sweetheart."

"Naruto!"

"What?"

"You—you just called me _sweetheart_."

"That's because you are a sweetheart. Do you mind?"

"No, no, not at all if you really think so."

She looked so adorably confused with her once again flushed face that he bent down and kissed her and only slightly lingeringly again. Despite what he wanted to do, he kept it short and sweet. That time and place remark of Shikamaru's really hit home for Hinata and himself. And if he didn't get back to the room soon, he'd have Shikamaru persistently on his trail again unfortunately with better results the next time. "I suppose we'd better get back before Shikamaru worries himself into a sweat."

"I suppose we should." She bent down and picked up her clothes. They'd been completely forgotten and trod on in these wonderful moments with Naruto.

"Hinata?'

"Yes, Naruto?"

"When you and I get back to Konoha, we're going on a date—a real date where no one can interrupt us. Okay?"

"Yes, Naruto." And her joyful smile had enough wattage to light up this little village, Konoha and his heart as well.

* * *

Despite the onerous task that lay ahead of her—the task of examining a dead man—Temari was in a good mood. She'd entered this village feeling anything but cheerful, however when the inn room door had opened to Shikamaru's scowling, irritated and very appealing face she'd felt her heart skip a beat. Whether it was relief or something else, she wouldn't admit to herself, but she'd felt a certain inevitability that he was here when she needed him.

She hadn't actively thought about him since she'd last seen him over a year ago, but she realized he'd been there in the back of her mind all along—the thought of him, the fact of him when she was ready for it. Now it appeared they both might be ready to acknowledge the attraction they'd always felt for one another. That made her feel happier than she'd felt in a long time.

It was irksome that they could only flirt around the edges of their attraction for the time being. This mission had to come first. But when it was completed—well, she had some thoughts about what her next move would be. And the next move was hers, because she couldn't see him leaving Konoha even to pursue her. She had some ideas about what she could do, and she thought Gaara would agree. He wanted a closer relationship with Konoha. She'd offer him a chance while giving herself one as well.

But she wasn't allowed to feel light-hearted for long. Last night she'd had a few more flirtatious, teasing moments with Shikamaru before they'd all gathered for dinner (kindly delivered from the only restaurant) in his room. They'd discussed in more detail what each member of both teams would do the next day, and then they'd separated to sleep.

In the morning, she and Daiki had eaten a hasty breakfast with the others before heading out to handle their part of the investigation. Only now was she beginning to understand some of what the others had been talking about regarding this village as she found herself face to face with the dour Constable Hayama.

"I don't see why we need _two more_ useless ninja investigating a death that has nothing to do with this village. Just bury it and be done with it. That's what I say," he mumbled quite intelligibly.

"What makes you think the death has nothing to do with your village?"

"He wasn't found inside the village, was he? That means it has nothing to do with us. It was some outsider. There's no point in wasting time and money on this thing."

"Your logic defies credulity," she told obliquely.

He scowled at her in a completely different way from Shikamaru. His expression was totally unappealing and his attitude was downright insulting. "You ninja think you're so smart lording it over a simple village constable with your damned superior talk and useless investigations. He probably just fell on a stone or something sharp in the road. The rain washed away any traces of blood. Nothing complicated about it."

Temari wouldn't dignify that ignorant statement with a response. She'd met his type before. He wouldn't believe anything he didn't think of first in his own little head. "We'll just have our own look at the body, if you don't mind. Your cooperation will be appreciated."

"I don't know why everybody needs to look at that body. There's nothing to see. He's got a hole in his chest. He's got no identifying marks. He's dead. End of story. You're lucky you showed up yesterday. We plan to bury him this evening."

"Then you should have no objection to us having a look for ourselves. It doesn't interfere with your plans at all."

"I've got better things to do than bring every damned ninja who comes into this village over here. I don't see why you have to look at it. Why are you here? What are you looking for?"

'The Konoha ninja have no objection to our participation in the investigation. We don't require any payment from Mountain Ridge. So I think our reasons will remain our business, Constable," she told him bluntly.

"Yeah, you ninja really stick together."

"Since we're allies with Konoha, we certainly do." She was tired of this obtuse, officious little man, but luckily they'd reached the icehouse where the body was located. He gruffly explained that he'd close the door once they were inside to preserve the cold temperature within, and he showed them how to latch the door again once they were through. He handed them a few lanterns and left them to it. Both parties were relieved to part company.

Temari and Daiki made their way down the wooden ladder to the bottom of the ice house. They made the same observations about their environment that the first team had made. Then she stood aside to allow Daiki to make his investigation of the body.

She watched him closely. Despite his 11 years of age, he appeared completely professional. The only tell-tale sign that he wasn't as impassive as he tried to appear was the trembling of his hands which could be from the cold—but she didn't think so. This must be the first time he'd ever examined a dead body. And what was especially difficult was that this could be the first dead family member he'd examined so closely.

"Well?" she asked when his movements became hesitant and halted altogether.

"It's him. It's Hidekatsu. I knew as soon as I touched him. Blood will tell, but I checked the few family traits still visible—hairline, ears, the crease we have in the center of our forearms. Everything matches," his voice quivered slightly.

She put her hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Daiki. I know this was difficult for you, but you were the only one who could help me in this."

"I know, sensei."

"Should we allow the village to bury him or do you want his body sent back home?"

He shrugged disconsolately. "I don't think my father will allow him to be buried with the family—especially not after what he did. He might as well be buried here."

"Good. Then we won't have to explain anything to that Constable—unless you want them to know his name?"

"It depends on what else we find out. If—if he deserved his death then I don't want anyone to know who he is."

"Okay, we'll wait and see."

They left the icehouse and continued on to the next part of their investigation—questioning the shopkeepers about the fan. Since there were very few shops, there were very few to ask. It was Temari's turn to be disconsolate when no one admitted to having seen her spectacular fan. She had no doubts that it was true. She could usually recognize dissembling unless the perpetrator was an excellent actor. She had no instinctual feeling that she'd met anyone of that caliber among the shopkeepers she questioned. So she had no choice but believe that her fan had not been seen in this village.

As they approached the inn after finishing up, they were greeted by a tall, older man.

"Hello, there. I'm Mayor Kobayashi. I was told there were a few new ninja in the village. I'd like to welcome you to Mountain Ridge."

"Thank you. I'm Temari. This is Daiki."

"I heard you were here looking for a rather remarkable object."

"News travels fast." Temari answered simply. She knew better than to volunteer information.

"Did the dead man steal it? Is that why you looked at the body? I don't suppose you could tell, could you? He was impossible to recognize."

"There was very little of him that hadn't been damaged," Temari agreed without actually answering his questions.

"Will you be working with the other ninja? We never expected _six _ninja to investigate our little problem. Actually, we never expected _four _ninja to show up."

"Our investigations have crossed, but they may be totally separate. We're under different orders than the Konoha ninja, because our clients are not the same." Temari saw the relief in his eyes when she implied that they wouldn't expect any payment for their contribution to the investigation. A small village like this one must find it difficult to fund a major investigation.

"Well, then, that's good to know. We never expected such young investigators. This young man is the youngest ninja I've ever met." He stared curiously at Daiki who stared blankly right back. Daiki wasn't the one who looked away first.

"There are many younger ninja. My brother was a ninja at age seven."

"Really? How interesting." He stood there looking at them seemingly at a loss for something more to say. "Well, then, you'll come to the dinner this evening, won't you?"

"Dinner?"

"We're having a welcome dinner so our village council can meet our ninja investigators. I do hope you'll come since you all know one another and may be working together."

"Thank you. I'm not sure yet if we can make it. It depends on how the investigation goes today."

"Well, well, I hope you can. If so, I guess I'll see you there." He awkwardly turned and walked away.

"He wasn't as bad as that constable, was he?" Daiki asked when the mayor was out of earshot.

"No. A typical politician, though—more interested in the bottom line than the investigation itself."

They walked into the inn and headed out to the back. Apparently, Temari had intimidated the innkeeper sufficiently from the beginning so that he made himself scarce when she appeared. She thought maybe she'd seen him duck out of sight as she entered. She didn't see any of the inn's employees either. They must have been warned off, too.

"I wonder if any of the others are back yet?"

"Let's knock on their door and find out."

They went over to Shikamaru's room, as she thought of it, and knocked, but there was no response.

"I guess we'll have lunch and wait for the others to get back. I hope one of them has discovered something of interest. I think we've found out all we can from this village. I'm not sure where to go from here—yet," Temari admitted. She'd just wait for Shikamaru to get back. He'd know what their next move should be. She had complete confidence in his abilities. And that thought warmly comforted her as she waited for Team Shikamaru to report in.


	13. Choji investigates

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XIII. Choji investigates

Choji was convinced his luck from the day before had decidedly run out as he trudged up the road towards Mount Hakudoshi, the mountain looming over Mountain Ridge Village. He'd been hoping for the same success as yesterday, but so far found absolutely no signs human habitation. As he walked his 3 kms. west and away from the village all he found was rocky terrain on one side of him and a forest on the other side of him. Unfortunately, the area he was intended to search between the western and northern roads consisted almost exclusively of a tall rocky barricade that began from the edge of the village and never lowered as far as he could see.

Once he'd reached the end of his approximately 3 kms., he sat down on a small patch of grass on the side of the road, reached into his back pack and pulled out some of the snacks he'd brought along. As he chomped and chewed, he thought about his options.

Option no. 1. He could continue down the road until he found a way around the cliff, but from where he'd been standing and now sat he hadn't seen any relief in that tall, rocky wall. In fact, the cliff seemed to rise higher at the edge of his vision. Who knew how long he'd have to walk before he could go around it? He might have to circumnavigate all of Mount Hakudoshi before the road shifted to the north. For today's limited search parameters, he decided that was too iffy a proposition to seriously consider.

Option no. 2. He could return to the village and take the northern road out approaching his search area from the other side—provided the other side was accessible and not blocked by the same rocky hill/mountain area. That seemed like a lot of walking and backtracking without having a clear answer on what he would find. Going backwards to get forwards just didn't seem logical. He decided that option no. 2 was superior to option no. 1, but still not the best choice.

Option no. 3. The cliff face beside him was not sheer. It inclined with rough, rocky indented areas. There was bound to be a section suitable for climbing with useful hand and foot holds. He was right here, right now without having to waste time on guesswork. It seemed to him that his best solution was to climb over the rocky obstacle in his way rather than try to go around it. It wasn't that tall—only about 25 meters. He'd climbed greater heights. It would be much quicker than the other options. The effort of climbing seemed less onerous that walking around. So, all things considered, he chose option no. 3.

Once he'd decided on his next step, he allowed his mind to settle on other things while he finished eating—namely the interesting things that were going on in the midst of this mission that had nothing to do with a dead ninja and the disappearance of a valuable fan. Shikamaru might think him insensitive to atmosphere, but he was no fool. Between the Naruto/Hinata pining glances with frequent blushing, and the Shikamaru/Temari subtle flirtation with brooding gazes, the atmosphere was saturated with romance. No wonder he was beginning to find all those flirtatious village girls so interesting. He felt left out.

He grinned widely and laughed aloud when he thought of his best friend, Shikamaru, in love. Temari was anything but the average, uncomplicated girl he claimed to want for a wife. She would definitely give Shikamaru the trouble he'd always avoided. But at least he wouldn't be bored. Despite his avoidance of anything he called _troublesome_, he really hated being bored.

He always appeared lazy to outsiders, but actually his inactivity came from the fact that he already knew the outcome of most courses of action and generally chose not to participate. He didn't take risks unless he was forced to by circumstances he couldn't control. As he grew older he was able to control many circumstances, so his risks were limited—and therefore his life was less eventful and more boring. He might live longer if he had no risks, but he wouldn't be happier. He needed something unpredictable in his life to shake things up—and Temari just might be the best remedy for boredom.

Choji thought so anyway. He liked to see his unflappable friend stirred up for a change. It was almost as amusing to watch as Naruto's awkward courtship of Hinata. Who would ever have thought those two would get together?

Yet the more he thought about it, the more he liked this match, too. Naruto's brashness and Hinata's bashfulness complimented one another. If they were lucky, she'd tone him down and he'd rev her up to less extreme positions. It could really be ideal. He'd enjoy watching the progress of both relationships.

Now that his friends were beginning to pair off, he wondered when he'd meet his ideal. He'd decided he didn't want to get involved with a kunoichi. He wanted someone like his mother—a homemaker and caregiver. He was old-fashioned and preferred not to marry a career woman, but really any woman who could accept him for what he was would be the one for him. He came from a happy family with loving parents and he wanted the same for himself.

At one time he thought he liked Ino Yamanaka, his teammate, but first she was in some strange female competition with Sakura over Sasuke Uchiha. Then, she was always criticizing him—telling him he was too fat—that no girl could like him. If he hadn't been as big as he was, his family jutsu would have killed him the first time he used it. He needed to always be prepared to use the ultimate weapon and he needed the bulk to survive it. If any female couldn't understand that then she wasn't the one for him. He'd given up on Ino a long time ago which was just as well, because she seemed to have her sights set on someone else just now.

Finally, he finished his repast and began to walk back towards the village, studying the cliff beside, him looking for the best place to climb. There were several possibilities, but he found a really promising spot only about a km. from the village. He didn't think he could do any better so he decided to climb from there. He set his foot into a likely indention, found good places for his hands and began to climb.

It took longer than he anticipated. There were many loose rocks that looked deceptively secure. Several times he misjudged a hand or foot hold and slid back down the cliff face a few meters or sometimes more. When he finally reached the summit, he was more than ready for another break. But first he had a look at his surroundings.

He blinked in surprise to find a lush, green valley lying below him completely surrounded by cliffs, the western most side leading up to Mount Hakudoshi. He could see a large house in the distance surrounded by grazing pastures littered with cattle, orchards and fields of growing vegetables. It looked to be a large and very prosperous farm. He wondered how they marketed their produce. There had to be a road somewhere. Maybe he should have approached from the northern side after all. Oh, well, too late now, but he'd certainly ask about an easier way out after visiting that farm house.

He sat down, drank some water, and ate another snack before heading down the gently rolling slope on this side of the cliff. It was tempting to walk too fast on the downhill slope, but he had to watch his footing to avoid animal holes, rocks and any other hazard ready to catch him unawares and send him rolling headlong down the hill. As he made his way down, he began to realize that from up above the farmhouse had seemed much closer than it actually was. He walked a good km. before getting appreciably close to it.

Finally he reached the pasture on the outskirts of the valley. He walked through the herd of grazing cows paying most of his attention to his feet so he could avoid cow patties when he suddenly heard a deep, fierce low. Turning he saw a bull stamping his feet, lowering his head and snorting angrily through his flared nostrils with black eyes glinting fiercely at him. Choji looked around for cover which seemed to be scarce in the open pasture. He took the only option open to him and quickly ran behind the nearest cow. When he peered around from his cover, the bull had raced past then stopped suddenly shaking his head and looking around. He stomped around a little, posturing for the cows placidly watching, but seeing nothing threatening lowered his head and began grazing again. Choji made the rest of his way across the pasture carefully, ducking from one cow to another until he was completely clear of the bull. Needless to say, he didn't fancy testing his ninja skills on a mad bull. In this instance, discretion was the better part of valor.

As he left the pasture area, climbing over a wooden fence, he saw the farm house ahead. It was as large and prosperous looking up close as from far away. As he approached the front entrance, a broad-shouldered girl appeared with a broom in her hand like a sword barring the door.

"You've come the wrong way around, stranger. I'm surprised Hageshii didn't gore you, but you are trespassing. What do you want here?"

Choji looked up at her from the bottom of the stairs. This wasn't how he was usually greeted by the young girls and women in and around the village. Her lack of welcome made him look her over more carefully. He hadn't met a single unattractive girl since he'd been at Mountain Ridge, but this girl was something different even without the flirtatious manner. She was taller and built on sturdier lines than most of the others. She looked strong, healthy and full-figured. She was the first female to make any real impression on him, probably because he'd been thinking about romance recently. He'd have to be careful or he really might end up engaged like Shikamaru had joked.

"Sorry about that. I didn't know what to expect when I climbed the cliff. I'm looking for someone. I'd like to ask you a few questions, if you don't mind." He gave her his best smile, but she seemed unimpressed.

She narrowed her eyes even more in the beam of his smile. "We've seen no strangers here in weeks." She had a low, mellow voice. Despite the hostility, it was rather soothing.

"It would have been about a week ago that he came through this area."

"Then, no. I've seen no one. You're wasting your time here." She waved the broom in a dismissive manner.

"Himiko, why are you being so rude?" Another female voice came through the door. It was higher pitched, and gently scolding.

"That's right, Himiko, you could at least invite him in and offer him refreshment," yet another female suggested pleasantly.

"We don't see many handsome strangers come this way."

"And rarely so _big_ a handsome stranger."

Choji was suddenly confronted by three young women one tall and two short; one now mute, and the other two making up to him in a ridiculously fulsome way. They were definitely related despite the difference in their attitude, height and built. Their facial features were very similar, and they all had long, braided brown hair, and hazel eyes. Only the first pair of eyes glared at him. The other two pairs were batting fiercely at him accompanied by simpering smiles. That was more what he was used to in this area, but not what he preferred.

"Fine. I'm going to get father," the interesting one named Himiko stalked off swinging her broom over her shoulder, leaving Choji at the mercy of the other two.

"Please come in, handsome stranger. Are you hungry?" the shortest one asked.

"Would you like some tea? Some onigiri?" the next taller one asked holding open the door.

They'd discovered Choji's weakness immediately. He knew they were only being hospitable, but he found their over eagerness to welcome and feed him suspicious. He'd felt that way about all the villagers. There was always a hint of calculation in the flirting. Naruto and Shikamaru had only found it annoying, but he had felt something more sinister involved. There just hadn't been anything concrete for him to point out, so he'd felt embarrassed about mentioning it. Now that he was alone, he wondered if he'd discover a good (or bad) reason for his suspicious.

With concealed misgivings, he followed them into the house. They settled him at a table in the front room. He wondered if he should accept refreshment. What if they intended to poison him? Or stab him in the heart like the dead ninja? He'd just have to be prepared for anything—even from pretty, flirtatious girls.

"We'll be right back."

"Don't go away." They both left giggling and whispering together.

Choji looked around. The inside of the farm house looked as prosperous as the outside with expensive, new-looking furnishings. The table was well-made of sandalwood. The shoji screens and tatami mats appeared fresh and clean. There were intricately carved sandalwood display shelves with small sculptures, porcelain figures, and finely painted vases with fresh flowers. It was a very large, bright and airy room. It was all in keeping with the prosperity of the farm.

When the two young women reappeared with refreshments, Himiko and an older man came into the room behind them.

"I'm sure my daughters failed to introduce themselves," the older man said. He was clearly their father with the masculine version of their nose, same hair and eye color. "I am Ohji Masa. This is my eldest daughter Tamako," he gestured to the smallest of the girls. "My second daughter, Shizuka," he gestured to the next taller girl. "And my youngest daughter, Himiko." Next to her father she was as tall and almost as broad-shouldered since he was a small man. To Choji's eyes, that didn't make her any less attractive than her sisters. In fact, he thought her more so because she looked stronger and more capable then her fluttering, petite sisters. He found himself preferring her scowl and suspicion to the flirtatious posturing of the other girls. The hostility seemed more genuine and oddly attractive.

"I'm Choji Akimichi. I'm a ninja from the Village Hidden in the Leaves. It's nice to meet you, sir."

"Is that so? A ninja, you say? Are you investigating the dead man that was found outside the village?"

"So you've heard about that?"

"Oh yes, we usually sell our produce in the village once a week on market day. It was the talk of the village last week. It was very worrisome to the villagers. I heard they were sending for outside investigators."

"We arrived two days ago. There are six of us." He included Temari and Daiki to make their group seem larger and more intimidating just in case this family was planning anything sinister since he was presently alone. "We've questioned the villagers and now we're searching the area around the village asking questions."

Ohji sat down and accepted a cup of tea from his oldest daughter. Choji readily accepted the cup set down in front of him not showing the suspicion he felt. He'd watched her pour out both cups, but he was still wary. He only pretended to sip.

"What are your questions, young man?"

"Do you remember seeing a man in the last week about my height, brown hair, black eyes, in his late twenties, wearing dark clothes and a ninja style vest? He had scars on his face across his forehead, cheek and chin."

They all shook their heads.

"Did you see any strangers in the last week?"

They all shook their heads.

"Here or in the village?" he persisted.

They all shook their heads.

"Have you ever seen an antique ivory fan, about 20 cm. long, gilded and embedded with precious jewels?"

There was some eye-widening at this question, but they all shook their heads once more.

"Do you know of anyone who would collect such an object?"

Ohji shrugged his shoulders. "Everyone owns some valuable items. This village has stood here over 100 years. Many of the village families are related to the feudal family who ruled this area at that time. There are many heirlooms that have been passed down. Those are the only truly valuable items that I know about."

"So no one in the village buys valuable artifacts?"

"We've all visited the city and purchased nice things, or bought interesting objects from traveling peddlers, but nothing the value of the fan that you described has been presented here. It's far too luxurious an object for anyone in our village to purchase. No one here is that wealthy anymore. The ruling family lost most of their wealth, land and power in the wars nearly 100 years ago."

Choji was frustrated. He'd hope to find out something today—if only to match yesterday's success. "You have many fine things in your house," Choji insisted.

"But do you see anything made with jewels? My wife liked pretty things about her and when we had a good year, I would buy her something nice. What you see here has been purchased over many years and nothing is as fine as the item you described."

Choji stared broodingly at the older man placidly drinking his tea. The answers seemed genuine enough, but he was certain there was a secret here. The question was: Did it pertain to his investigation or not?

"Won't you have an onigiri?" Tamako asked and proffered a tray when the silence stretched too long.

"Ah—" he said hesitantly.

"I made them. They're delicious," Shizuka added.

"You did not! I made them," Tamako protested.

"Now girls, don't confuse the young man with your teasing. Himiko made them. She's the best cook in this family since her mother passed away."

"Father! It doesn't matter who made them," Himiko protested with a flushed face.

"Of course, it matters. I wager this young man is very particular about his food. Marrying a good cook would be of primary consideration to him."

"Father! Don't! Please!" She glared at her father, then her giggling sisters and then Choji.

At her distress, Choji couldn't help coming to her rescue. He took one of the onigiri and ate a bite. "This is very good," he said after he swallowed. And it was. The rice was cooked just right, the umeboshi was nicely salty and tart and the nori tasted fresh. He finished eating one before continuing. "I really have no plans to marry for a few years. My mission here is to investigate a mysterious death. Nothing more."

"Love can not be scheduled and planned, young man. When it happens, it happens. My wife and I were only acquaintances when we wed. Love and friendship came later. That's not such a bad way for things to go."

"Hmmm," Choji gave a noncommittal response to that. This guy was far more aggressive than any of the females he'd met so far. He'd better watch his step or he might find himself engaged no joke. He decided a change of subject was way overdue. "Where's your son?" he asked suddenly.

"My son?" Ohji choked on his tea. His daughters gathered in concern around him. Himiko pounded on his back until he had recovered. "M—my son is away visiting relatives. How did you know I had a son?" he asked carefully in a scratchy voice waving his daughters aside.

"Lucky guess. Where are your farm hands?" he guessed again.

He waved his hand carelessly and took a sip of tea. He'd completely recovered his calm. "They're all out working in the fields or the orchards."

"Funny, I didn't see anyone on my way in. I should question them."

"There's no need. They would have reported to me if they had seen any strangers in this valley. We're careful of strangers. Thieves have been known to find us here on occasion."

Choji thought about persisting, but he had a feeling there were no farm hands to question. If Shikamaru thought it necessary, he could return to this farm with back-up to insist on questioning the invisible farm hands. "You have three unmarried daughters. I would have thought to find suitors all around here, but oddly enough I've seen very few young men around the village."

"My daughters have many suitors. Today's not one of the days we receive them. My eldest daughter, Tamako is engaged. Her fiancé teaches in the village school."

"Oh? I don't remember seeing a school. I don't remember seeing any children either."

"Our children only attend classes in the fall, winter and early spring. Tamako's fiancé is away visiting his relatives this summer."

"There's a lot of that going around," he mumbled.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Nothing. I was just talking to myself. It's a bad habit I have. So there's nothing you can tell me that might be related to my case?"

"No. I'm sorry, but we never saw the man you described. Is he the dead man? I was told he was unrecognizable."

"We recognized him," Choji said shortly. "Are there any other families in this valley?"

"No. My family has owned this farm for over a hundred years. My ancestors were related to the ruling family and were given this land to farm. It's the finest farmland in this area. We've held onto it all this time—even through the old wars."

"Well, then, thank you for answering my questions."

"It's a pleasure to receive such a distinguished visitor. I've never seen a ninja before. I expected someone older."

"That's what everyone around here says. Tell me, Mr. Masa, is there a nice, straight road out of here? How do you get to the village?"

"Didn't you come by the road?"

"No, Father, he came from over the cliff to the south," Himiko answered quickly for him.

His eyes widened. "You climbed the cliff?"

"That's right. My search area was from the western road to the northern road. I couldn't find a way in so I climbed over."

"You came through the pasture? Hageshii didn't try to gore you?"

"He did, but I hid—behind a cow actually. I figured once he couldn't see me, he wouldn't chase me."

He laughed. "That's very true. Bulls are attracted to movement from something or someone unfamiliar to them. You would definitely have appeared a threat to him."

"Well, today wasn't the day to try my hand at bullfighting. I thought it best to avoid him."

"Very smart, young man. I'm sorry we couldn't have been of help in your search. My daughter, Himiko will show you the way to the road. It was nice meeting you."

"Thank you for your time," Choji responded, stood up, and bowed. He was taller and bigger than all of them. Even in the large room, he felt as if he were crowding them.

Himiko glared at her father then, glared at Choji before turning on her heel and stalking from the room. Her skirt was too narrow to actually flounce, but that was the impression Choji had of her swift turn. She was not pleased to be accompanying him. He couldn't blame her after her father's clumsy attempts at instant matchmaking.

"Hey, Himiko Masa, slow down," he called once they were out of the house and down the stairs. "Are we in a race?"

She stopped and waited for him to catch up. "I'm sorry. I thought you'd want to get on with your investigation since we had nothing to tell you," she said defensively.

"You don't seem to like me. That's strange because all the other girls in the village seemed to like me. Your sisters seemed to like me. Apparently, I'm a very likeable guy."

"They would," she snorted in disgust.

"Oh? That's a strange reaction. What do you mean by that? Do you think I'm unlikable? Even your father seems to like me. Are they all pretending?"

She held up her hands as if warding off a blow. "No! I didn't mean that! I'm sure you're quite likeable. Forget I said anything."

"No. I want to know. Seriously, girls don't usually flirt with me. If I had an ego it would be overly inflated by now. Your reaction to me is more what I'm accustomed to. What's that all about?"

She hesitated. "I'm sorry. I don't dislike you, but you saw what my father's like. You yourself mentioned that you haven't seen many young men in the village."

"Yeah, I've noticed. What's going on?"

"There just aren't many young men—that's all. So any reasonably good-looking, single young man who comes to the village is of interest to every single young woman—and her parents."

He grinned. "Hey, nobody's ever called me reasonably good-looking before. Cool."

She flushed. "You know what I mean! You're not ugly! You're big, strong and a ninja. Of course, you'd have them flirting with you."

"Yeah, I get it. They're all on the make for a husband—and I fit the bill."

She shrugged. "As you say."

"But not you? You're the first girl around here who hasn't given me the eye. Don't _you_ think I'm reasonably good-looking—and a good catch?" He was just discovering how much fun it was to tease a pretty girl. Of course, he justified his questions with the notion that they furthered his research. Having fun with it was just an added bonus.

She flushed again. "I'm only 16. I don't have to jump at every man I see."

"Unlike your older sisters, unh? So let me get this straight—if I were interested in, say, your sister Shizuka, that would be okay with you?"

She glared at him again. "I wouldn't advise it. You wouldn't like it here."

"Why not?"

"Stop asking me all these questions. It has nothing to do with your investigation." She waved her hands decisively. He noticed that she had long, elegant hands.

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

"Why should I take your word for it?"

"Because I don't lie!" she said crossly.

"I barely know you. You seem like a nice, sincere girl, but that's not a good enough reason for me to stop asking questions or instantly believe you. I want to know what's going on."

"You'll just have to trust me, because I'm not going to tell you anything else. We know nothing about your dead man or your valuable fan. Look, there's the road." She suddenly pointed ahead of them.

The road leading from the Masa's lush valley seemed to go straight through the cliff face in the north, but there was actually a natural break in the wall that was camouflaged by the overhang of one side onto the other.

When he turned from the road back to her, she was already walking away. "Wait!" he called.

She stopped half turned, but kept her head down not looking at him.

He walked closer to her. "Are you sure I shouldn't come back here, and fall in love with your sister, Shizuka?"

She looked up in shock. "She made that big an impression on you?"

He grinned. "No. I just want to know why you don't want me to do it, that's all."

She scowled at him. "Do what you want, but she won't leave here. You'd have to move to the farm. You're a ninja. You wouldn't want to do that, would you?"

"Why?"

"Because, that's the way it is."

"What about the village girls?"

"They won't leave either."

"How can you be sure?"

"I just am. Please don't ask me anymore questions. I can't tell you anything. I promise, it really, really has nothing to do with your investigation."

"What about you?"

"What?"

"Do you have to stay here, too?"

She looked sad. "Yes. We all do."

"Tell me why. Let me help you," he told her earnestly. He didn't like the sound of this secret. Even if it had nothing to do with his investigation, he couldn't let it go.

She shook her head. "There's nothing you can do. Don't imagine the reason is horrible," she said hastily. "It isn't, but it _is _village business. That's all I can tell you. Really."

"I bet we can figure it out," he said confidently. With Shikamaru on their team, they could figure out any mystery.

"You already have one mystery to solve. Let this one alone. Please!"

"Would you like to be able to leave if you wanted to?"

She looked around at her valley. "It's a very beautiful place, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is."

"But sometimes it feels like a cage. I wouldn't mind seeing other places, but this will always be my home."

"Even if you marry?"

She sighed. "Especially if I marry. My husband will live here with my family."

"I thought women usually lived with their husband's family."

"Not always in this village—unless the families decide otherwise. That's the way it is here. Nobody wants to leave the village," she said bitterly.

"So why were you so mean to me?"

She flushed. "I wasn't so very mean. I just knew how my family would react to you. I didn't want you to fall for it."

"How come?" he persisted.

"I just didn't. Shouldn't you be on your way?"

"So maybe you do think I'm a reasonably good-looking guy after all?"

"Maybe. Now go away." She was finding it difficult to frown as he leveled that silly grin at her.

"You know this is a pretty nice village. I may come back through here some time. Would you mind if I visited your farm when I do?"

"I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not." She was flushed again.

"Good. Then, I'll be seeing you," he said. He gave her a wave then set off down the road through the northern cliff.

He was going to find out what all that flirting and matchmaking was about. Even if it had nothing to do with his present investigation, he was still very curious. He needed to find the answers to this mystery as well before he left this place. He couldn't say why, he just needed to know.

He thought about his visit all the way back to the village. That onigiri had really been good. It was almost better than his mom's. And it hadn't been poisoned. Man, he wished he'd eaten more of them. Oh well, maybe next time.

He grinned at that thought. Wouldn't Shikamaru have a good laugh at that? And Naruto, too. He'd just have to make sure to keep that out of his report since they'd never guess at the possibility that he could be attracted to a girl on their own. He could scarcely believe it himself. But that onigiri had been really, really good.


	14. Naruto tries his hand at investigation

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XIV. Naruto tries his hand at investigation

Hinata Hyuga.

He couldn't stop thinking about her.

Her unusual silver eyes were so beautiful and mysterious. He could get lost in those eyes and wouldn't mind a bit. She had the shiniest, silkiest black hair that he longed to run his fingers through. She had the sweetest, heart-shaped face with a soft, lush mouth he wanted to kiss again and again. And her soft, petite figure fit so snugly against his that he hadn't wanted to let her go.

Naruto hadn't been able to get thoughts of Hinata out of his head since they'd managed their little rendezvous and steamy kiss. He just hadn't realized how much he wanted to be with her—how every stolen minute only made him hunger for more—how every minute away from her made him ache to be with her again. He couldn't spare a single thought to this mission, his head was so full of Hinata.

He couldn't believe how quickly he'd fallen for her.

Their mission together two months ago had made him aware of her as a desirable, attractive female definitely on par with Sakura. He'd been frustrated in furthering his interest in her by her long recuperative vacation. Being thrown into another mission together before he could be alone with her in a more leisurely fashion had only exacerbated his feelings. He'd spent all his life learning to be a ninja, training to be a ninja, and being a ninja. In almost 19 years, he hadn't had a real personal life. Now he wanted one with Hinata.

Only a few days ago, he'd been thinking how much he liked her, and now he was thinking way beyond like. He knew it was too soon in this stage of their relationship—and he wasn't ready to admit it completely to himself—but he was feeling something much more than like for Hinata Hyuga.

He needed to get home so he could deal with these jumble of feelings in a normal fashion and not in the middle of a mission with a bunch of smart ass ninja watching his every move. He'd known that from the very beginning, but every moment of this mission only made him more anxious to be alone with her away from work.

His only satisfaction was that he'd finally settled that they'd be dating when they returned to Konoha. It had actually been a difficult thing for him to finally do. First he hadn't the opportunity to do anything, and then he'd lacked the nerve. But her response to his kiss had given him courage. Now that he'd finally won a commitment from her for a date when they returned to Konoha, he wanted to get through that date and figure out where to go from there. He certainly hoped a real date with nothing to concern them but the two of them would lead to more kissing and embracing. From that point he was a little vague on the details. He just knew he wanted to get his arms around her again and learn a little more about that soft, round female form that had him all hot and bothered.

At breakfast he couldn't catch a moment alone with her so he couldn't do any more than wish her good luck and tell her to be careful. He'd tried to make those few words as meaningful as possible, and he must have succeeded because her face was a flaming red when she'd left. He'd barely managed to ignore Choji's smirk, Shikamaru's raised brows and Temari's wink when he'd really wanted to tell them all to stuff it. As long as they didn't interfere, he'd try not to care what they thought about his interest in Hinata and the razzing that went along with it. Someday soon, he'd want the whole world to know. But first, he wanted a little more time for just the two of them to adjust to this new relationship before he invited the world in on his happiness. Then he'd tell everyone that he, Naruto Uzumaki was dating Hinata Hyuga.

Despite his annoyance with this village, this mission, and the knowing glances of his companions, he felt pumped. He couldn't imagine anything that could spoil his mood. Not the nosey innkeeper or his flirtatious daughter. Not the cranky constable or the doubting mayor. He just felt too good.

He had no expectations regarding his search of the northern road to the eastern road. If the villagers knew nothing, he didn't expect anyone living in the outlying areas to know anything either. He was beginning to think that the dead ninja was just the victim of a random robbery and they weren't going to find out anything more in this place. If that ended this mission more quickly, he didn't care if they didn't find anything.

Of course, the opposite could more easily happen. If it was all random with no clear clues then this mission could drag on forever. Where would they search next? The thief or thieves could be anywhere. Why had Shikamaru told Temari they'd continue the mission even if they found out nothing in the village? Would Granny Tsunade even agree to that? Weren't they more valuable on a mission with a finite time table? He didn't want to let Temari down either, but her mission was just a personal interest in a valuable fan. It wasn't life or death.

He could ruminate about it all he wanted, but it wasn't his decision. He knew that as long as the mission had value—monetary or training—they were stuck with it. If the Sand Village was willing to pay for their involvement once they were finished with this village then he had no choice but to follow orders. But he'd do it under a certain amount of protest—that was his trademark after all. Of course, he wouldn't let anyone know that he just wanted to get back to Konoha to have his date with Hinata. Granny Tsunade, especially wouldn't think romance was a good enough reason to abort a mission. She was too old for romance anymore, so she probably wouldn't be the least bit sympathetic to his needs or wants. He'd just have to do his best to end this stupid mission as soon as possible.

He trudged up his road until he thought he'd gone about 3 km. He felt sorry for Choji because the western side was one big, rocky cliff. He didn't see an opening anywhere on his side. He wondered if Choji had found a way in from the other side. Oh well, it wasn't his problem. He'd hear about it soon enough when he got back to the village to report in.

The northern to eastern side of the road contained lots of trees—a whole forest of trees. Fortunately, he found a small path leading into the forest about half way along his route. It was trodden down with more dirt than grass in evidence so it must be used fairly frequently. He figured to find someone to question along that path. He'd like to return with something interesting to report. He didn't want Choji to have all the glory on this mission. Maybe the people living along this path had seen the dead ninja or the fan or maybe they knew what happened to all the young men. He had his doubts about learning anything, but he'd been wrong before. Wouldn't it be great if he was the one to bring in the next big clue?

He found no other paths along his route, so he returned to the only one he'd passed, and entered the forest. He liked forests which was a good thing since he had to travel through so many of them. He had an affinity for nature, maybe because he contained a wild creature. The nine-tailed fox was a demon, but also a wild animal.

He put a hand over his stomach where the tetragram seals that contained the nine-tailed fox resided. Sometimes he felt sorry for Kyuubi until he remembered all the Konoha villagers he'd killed. Kyuubi got what he deserved—locked up forever—or at least until Naruto died. Kyuubi thought he'd die when Naruto did, so that was why he'd often helped him with a chakra boost. No one had fully explained to him all the facets of being a jinchūriki. No one had gone into detail about Kyuubi's attack on the village and the Fourth Hokage's courageous sacrifice. He still had a lot of questions, but no one wanted to answer them. It might be because there were some very negative drawbacks to being a jinchūriki. He'd never had the same problems Gaara had had, but then he'd gotten his demon in a different way. If there was something terrible in his future, maybe he really didn't want to know. He just led his life as if he were as normal as everyone else. No one told him he couldn't.

The path was straight, not meandering. The trees began to get sparser until they stopped altogether at a wrought iron and wooden fence and gate. In the center of a huge cleared space within the fenced area was a large, old, elegant house. It was the type of house that would have been owned by the ruling class a long time ago. He wasn't used to homes quite as large and regal looking. He thought it would be awesome to own a house like that one day. The Third hadn't even had a house that awesome looking. He wondered why he hadn't since he'd been the most important man in the village.

The gate was closed but not locked. He pushed it open and walked down a gravel path to the front door.

Looking around, he could see that the yard was well-tended. In fact, he saw the back of a gardener at the far corner of the house, bent over, and clipping shrubbery. He wore blue pants and a shirt, a straw hat, brown gardening gloves and similarly colored shoes.

Naruto thought about walking over to talk to him, but decided to let the owners know he was on the property first. He didn't have the same authority as the village constable over the inhabitants of the village and surrounding area. Someone could object to his questions. In that case, he might have to drag the constable out here to intercede for him. Wouldn't he just love that? It would make his day.

He really hoped it didn't come to that. He wouldn't be able to keep his temper if that constable got all superior and arrogant. That would be a job for Shikamaru not him. He was still trying to think of an acceptable way out of that dinner the mayor was organizing. He was tired of being all polite and civil. It just wasn't him.

He walked up the stairs and knocked on the door. The house was so big, he wondered if anyone would hear him. How long should he wait before trying again? How hard should he knock the next time? If nobody answered, should he open the door and walk in? These and similar questions occupied his thoughts as he stood kinetically outside the door. He didn't know how to stand still; he was too impatient and energetic for that. He tended to shift his weight from foot to foot, swing his arms around, take a few steps back and forth, tap his foot, fold and unfold his arms. An entire gamut of _waiting_ movements were available to him, but he'd hardly run through the first few he usually used before the door opened.

An old woman in a dark blue kimono stood at the door. "May I help you, young man?"

"Hi. Yeah. I'd like to ask you some questions. I don't know if you've heard—a man was found dead outside the village about a week ago. I've been hired by the village to investigate the death. I'm a ninja." Naruto felt as if he were babbling. He wasn't sure how much he should explain. Everyone in the village knew who he was and why he was there, but he wasn't sure if the people on the outskirts knew what was going on. He hadn't really given it any thought until just this minute. Now as this old woman stood squarely in the partially opened doorway and looked at him patiently with a friendly smile on her face, he felt apologetic. He wished he'd been more prepared.

"Oh yes, I heard something about that. I do go into the village every week for groceries. I rarely gossip, so I don't know any of the details."

"I'd like to ask you some questions—and any other members of your household, too."

"I see." She studied him a moment, then stepped back and opened up the door. "Come in, young man. I can offer you some tea while you ask your questions."

"Thank you." He stepped into the house. There was a wide staircase in the center of the foyer with a suit of armor on either side. The armor was from feudal times and made of small, overlapping black and red lacquered metal plates tied with silk cords. Each figure wore a kabuto over a blank cloth face, and held a wakizashi sheathed on their right sides. One figure held a yumi and the other figure held a yari. Other old weapons and shields hung on the walls between paper paneled doors leading down the hallway.

Naruto followed the old woman to the first door on the right. Inside was a small room decorated with old watercolor paintings on rice paper behind glass and carved wooden frames. The old woman gestured to a small table in the center of the room. Naruto sat down with his legs crossed. He never could sit for long with his legs folded beneath him as many older people did. They always grew numb and he hated the pins and needles feeling when he tried to stand.

He'd found the hallway with all the old weapons more interesting than the room he'd been led to. He wasn't interested in old pictures and there wasn't anything else to look at. He'd didn't have an artistic bone in his body.

He didn't have very long to wait before the old woman returned with an old man behind her. She carried a pot of tea, tea cups, and a plate of biscuits. She set them down and poured tea out for him and the old man who had accompanied her.

"Welcome to the home of Lord Fujishima." The old man bowed his head and sat down at the table opposite Naruto. "I am Sessue Hayama and this is my wife Yuzu. We are the caretakers of Lord Fujishima, his house and grounds."

Naruto frowned. "Hayama? Any relation to the village constable?"

He inclined his head. "He is a distant cousin. I don't claim to know him very well despite his close proximity."

"You're better off," he mumbled. "I have a few questions for you and Lord Fujishima, if that's okay?"

The old man shook his head. "I'm sorry, but Lord Fujishima is very old and ill. He rarely leaves his bed these days. I can not allow him to be disturbed."

"If he's bedridden then I guess I won't need to ask my questions of him. I'm only interested in this past week and whether you've seen a certain individual."

"We rarely have visitors to this house. Lord Fujishima has not received visitors for many years."

"I'm interested in a ninja—tall with brown hair and a number of scars over his face. Have you seen such a man here or in the village?"

They both shook their head and the old man answered. "I have not seen such a man as you've described come to this house."

"Has anyone been here trying to sell an old ivory fan about 20 cm. long with jewels on it?"

They both shook their heads again and the old man answered. "No one has tried to sell us such a valuable item. Lord Fujishima is only a modestly wealthy man despite the quality of this house. A long time ago his family ruled this area and owned all the land hereabouts, but much of the family's wealth and property was lost in the wars over a hundred years ago. Lord Fujishima is the last of his direct line. When he dies this property has been willed to a distant cousin. What you have seen in the hallway—the old armor—and here—the old artwork is practically all that is left of the family's treasures. Everything else of value had been sold many years ago. Most of the rooms in this house are completely empty."

"I saw a gardener outside. May I question him? Maybe he saw a stranger in this area."

"He's very deaf and has very poor eye-sight. He's worked here all of his life and is as old as everyone else in this house. He would have told us if he'd seen someone. Thieves have been known in these parts. We must always be vigilant."

"Is there anyone else in the household that I could question?"

They shook there heads. "We are the only ones here now. Sometimes our son visits, but he hasn't been here in many months. He's grown and doesn't live here any more. He wanted to live in a more populous area. This house was too isolated and the village too small for him."

Naruto was at a loss. Every one of his questions had been met with negative responses. Of course, he'd been expecting as much, but he'd hoped to discover something. He must have looked disconsolate, because the old woman pushed the plate of biscuits towards him urging him to eat one.

"We rarely see anyone in this forest. We're not exactly on the beaten path," the old man said apologetically. "Lord Fujishima has always kept himself aloof from the village. The family has never gotten over their loss of status, I think. Lord Fujishima's brother was the original heir to the family property. He never married and died without issue about twenty years ago. The present Lord Fujishima had always been reclusive. Inheriting the title and property made no difference to his lifestyle. I don't think he's ever been to the village in his whole life—even when he was a young man. He was sent away to school and when he completed his education came home and stayed here ever since."

Naruto thoughtfully ate a biscuit. They were very good. "I guess that's why nobody mentioned this place in the village."

"Yuzu or I visit the village once a week for supplies, but we have nothing to do with village politics or functions. We came to this house as a married couple forty years ago and never left. Despite the family's losses after the wars, there was still a great social distance between the village people and the Fujishima family that has always been in place. Visitors were never encouraged. Most of our immediate family have died, so we have no close friends any longer in the village. I'm sorry that we couldn't be of more help to you in your investigation."

They both looked at him so sympathetically that he felt guilty that he'd even bothered them. "I'm questioning anyone who lives between the northern and eastern roads to about 3 kms. outside the village—does anyone else live in this area?"

"No. All of that area belongs to Lord Fujishima. Besides this house, it's all forest now."

"Well, thank you for the tea. I've taken up enough of your time." Naruto stood up. There wasn't anything else he could think to ask except—"Say do you know why there aren't any young men in the village?"

The old couple exchanged a glance. "Aren't there? Really? I don't think I've ever noticed the lack of young men. Perhaps they're like our son and decided not to stay in the village. I'm sorry, but I can't help you with that."

Naruto bowed his head to the couple and followed the old woman to the door. When he got outside, the gardener had vanished or he might have asked him the same questions despite being told of his deafness and bad eye sight.

He jumped down the steps and followed the gravel path out of the yard.

That was a complete waste of time, but as Shikamaru would say—necessary to a complete investigation. He wondered how the others were faring in their part of the investigation. Maybe Hinata had finished as soon as he did and they could spend some time together.

With that happy thought, he hurried back to the village inn.


	15. Shikamaru ponders some answers

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XV. Shikamaru ponders some answers

The wheels within Shikamaru's brain began to turn more quickly and smoothly as he greased them with the information he'd gathered from his investigation of the northern to eastern roads outside the village. It hadn't actually amounted to much, and in anyone else's head it would have died a lonely death, but Shikamaru could see diamonds in even the roughest coal. He had plenty of time for processing information as he sauntered back to the village at a leisurely pace. However, his intuition could use a little substantiation, so he was counting on his team to provide him with a few of the missing links.

It was early afternoon when he made his way to the Mountain Ridge restaurant for a late lunch. Since it was the only restaurant in town, it was lucky their food wasn't half bad. He wasn't surprised to find Choji there before him tucking into a large beef bowl.

"I should have known I'd find you here," he greeted his friend with an indulgent smile.

"Hey, it's lunch time—or close enough. Where else would I be?"

"You did finish your research first, right?"

Choji gave him a hurt look. "Of course, I did. I'm a professional."

He held up his hands in apology. "Sorry. My mistake. I guess I'm just in a tiresome mood."

"No luck, unh? Me neither."

"I did find out a little something, but I don't think it has anything to do with our mission. I was really hoping one of you guys would find out something that would push this investigation forward."

Choji shook his head. "Today wasn't my day for finding out things. But I did meet some more cute girls."

"No kidding. Me, too." He grinned this time with more humor. Choji could always put him in a good mood. "You didn't get engaged or anything did you?"

Choji grinned back. "No, but it was a close thing. Her father was pretty pushy, and she was really cute. Plus, she's a good cook."

"Well, that clinches it. She's cute _and_ a good cook—maybe you should get engaged."

"As if. But seriously, Shikamaru—you know, there's something weird about this village. Himiko—"

"Who?"

Choji scowled at him turning a little red. "Duh, the girl I've been talking about. Himiko Masa. She wouldn't tell me much, but she gave me the hint that all the girls around here are eager for husbands—husbands that have to stay here in the village. She said it wasn't a horrible reason, but she wouldn't say any more."

Shikamaru gave him a raised eyebrows look. "Congratulations. I'd say that was a little something to find out. Was it your charm or persuasive skills that got you that information?"

He grinned. "My charm, of course. I think she liked me—_for real_—not that fake stuff we've been getting."

"Way to go, Choji. I learned some things today that may tie into that. Let's go into it in more detail when we meet up with the others after lunch."

"Sounds good," he agreed and continued eating his large beef bowl while Shikamaru ate from the much smaller one he'd requested.

* * *

"Where's my scribe?" Shikamaru asked as he and Choji came up to the members of the team already finished with their parts of the investigation. Everyone was assembled except Hinata. Temari and Daiki were sitting on the ground under a large maple tree near the pond while Naruto paced around them.

"She hasn't come back yet," Naruto said glumly. He'd spent the last hour watching for Hinata with Temari teasing him. Luckily Daiki was too young or too disinterested to jump into the bait Naruto game.

Shikamaru sat down beside Temari while Choji said down beside Daiki. Naruto continued to pace around them. "Maybe more people lived in her section. Why don't we go over what the rest of us discovered today so we can start analyzing it? We can catch Hinata up when she gets back. Anyone want to take notes?"

"Daiki can do it. He's got a legible scrawl," Temari volunteered.

"Hey, Naruto, since you're up, why don't you get the notebook Hinata was using yesterday? She left it in our room—and don't forget the brush and ink."

"Yeah, yeah, okay," he said and strode off purposefully to their room.

"What's his problem?" Choji asked.

Temari shrugged. "Hinata's not back yet."

"Oh, yeah, right."

"You didn't have a good day, did you?" Shikamaru asked her.

She drew up her knees hugging them to her chest, and rested her cheek on top of them, her face turned to Shikamaru. "Not very. I don't know what I expected—but something more than nothing."

"I know what you mean. My outing wasn't very productive either. Were you at least able to conclusively identify our dead ninja?"

"Yes. Daiki recognized him immediately."

"Intuition, family character traits, or kekkei genkai?

She wrinkled her nose at him. "You're _so_ smart. All of the above."

He leaned back and stretched out his legs. "I had no doubt you'd identify him. That at least settles one mystery. Do we reveal his identity?"

"That depends on why he died. Daiki would rather he remain anonymous if his identity would tarnish the family name."

He nodded his head. "I think that's a wise move. Has anyone from the village approached you about a burial?"

"No. No one's come near us since this morning."

"Lucky you," he said dryly. "I imagine we'll be asked at this dinner of the mayor's tonight. I don't suppose anyone's mentioned that either."

"That's your first incorrect supposition, Shikamaru. The mayor invited us just this morning."

"Damn! I was hoping they'd postpone it long enough for us to settle this and leave before it actually happened."

Naruto was back with the writing utensils. He handed them over to Daiki, then plopped down beside Choji. "I think we should wait for Hinata. Maybe I should go out and find her" he suggested eagerly.

"If she's not back once we've all given our reports then you can go ahead. Right now I want everyone to listen to every report. I want you to think about what we've learned so far. If you have any suggestions, I want to hear them. This investigation belongs to all of us—so all ideas are welcome. Temari, why don't you give us your report first?"

She straightened up. "Very well. The dead man is Hidekatsu. Daiki confirmed it. No one we questioned had seen my fan. The constable's an officious jerk. The mayor's a typical politician. That's all we learned today," she said succinctly.

Shikamaru grinned. "That's the best summary I've ever heard—brief and to the point. My compliments to the kunoichi from the Sand."

She inclined her head regally. "Thank you, but that's no consolation for the lack of information. I didn't get the slightest hint that anyone was lying about the fan or Hidekatsu. They may have other things to hide, but those weren't it."

"I'm beginning to come to that conclusion myself. Did you get all that, Daiki? Good. Moving on—Choji, how did your investigation go?"

"Well, there was only one large, prosperous farm in my area so I only had one family to question."

"So there was actually something on your side of the road? I only saw a big cliff from my side," Naruto interrupted. "I was beginning to feel sorry for you."

"There was a big cliff on my side, too—I climbed over it. In between the cliffs and Mount Hakudoshi was a sweet, lush valley. The road leading in was on your side, Naruto. It was just further up the road than 3 km. It was more like 5 km. I thought I might see you on the road on the way back, but you beat me here."

"Enough with the travelogue. What about the family?"

"The farm is owned by the Masa family. I met Ohji Masa, the father and his three daughters, Tamako, Shizuka, and Himiko."

"Three daughters? How did you manage to escape unattached?" Naruto grinned.

"I didn't. I'm engaged to Himiko, the youngest one," Choji deadpanned.

"What!?" Naruto almost fell over in shock.

Choji grinned. "Gotcha! I could have gotten engaged. That Ohji Masa was really persistent. He was pushing his youngest daughter on me with a heavy hand. She was a good cook, too. It was a close thing," he swiped his hand over his brow in mock relief.

"Choji, didn't you learn anything from Temari's report?" Shikamaru asked pointedly.

"Oh yeah—brief. Nobody saw a ninja or a fan in the last week. Nobody knew anyone who'd be interested in a valuable fan. I asked the old man where his son was which caught him off guard. He said his son was visiting relatives. He told me his oldest daughter was engaged to the village teacher. He said the guy was also visiting relatives. When I asked about farm hands, he said they hadn't seen anyone. But I got the impression there were no farm hands. That's all the information I got out of him. His youngest daughter, Himiko, showed me the way out and I got a little information from her. She hinted that the village girls were all eager for husbands and they had to stay in the village. She claimed the reason wasn't horrible although she looked sad about it, but she wouldn't give me any more details. So how was that for brief?"

"Passable. Interesting about the son and fiancé. I may have some ideas about that when it's my turn. But let's have Naruto's report next. Are you ready, Daiki? Okay. Go ahead, Naruto. Remember Temari's report's the model."

"Yeah. Okay," he took a deep breath. He'd thought about everything he'd seen and heard, but he hadn't actually practiced it in report form. "Here goes. There was just one house in my search area. It was awesome—really huge and old and fancy-looking. When I got inside, I saw old weapons and armor all over the place—oh yeah, and some old pictures, too. I only saw the hallway and one room though. The house is owned by Lord Fujishima. That name sounds familiar, but I can't remember why. Anyway, I didn't see him because he was old, sick and bedridden. The old couple who took care of him and the house talked to me. You won't believe this, but they're related to that jerk constable—glad you agree with me about him, Temari—same name anyway, but they said they don't know him very well. They've been taking care of the Fujishima family for about 40 years, and only come to the village once a week for supplies. They don't mix much with the villagers—they don't gossip—but they did hear about the dead ninja. They said the Fujishima family used to rule over everything around here until about a hundred years ago. They lost most of their property and money in the wars. All they own now is that house and the land around it. But they don't socialize with the villagers, because they still think they're too good for them. Besides the old couple and old man Fujishima, there was an old gardener but he was deaf and half-blind. Nobody saw a ninja or a fan in the last week. I guess that's all." When he ended he sucked in another deep breath since he'd talked fast without much breathing. He hadn't been sure he could do brief by the number of words, so he settled on speed.

Shikamaru rubbed his chin. "So they wouldn't let you see or talk to Lord Fujishima?"

"Nope."

"And the gardener was definitely deaf and half-blind?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, and gave him a weak grin. "Well, I saw him, but I didn't actually talk to him. The old couple told me he wasn't worth talking to."

"I see. Did you notice if any of the weapons were of the size and shape to kill our dead ninja?"

He shook his head. "There were many types of katana—wakizashi, kodachi, kogusoku, and tanto—yoroidōshi, metezashi, shashitō. Even the kubizashi and bashin looked too large for the wound we saw. There were a few yari, but they didn't look small enough, either. Most of them seemed to be battle weapons from a long time ago."

"You have a good eye for weapons, Naruto. I find it interesting that this is the first place that has had an open display of weapons. The weapon we're looking for would probably not be gracing a lord's walls, however. It's small enough to be concealed on one's person so anyone could be carrying it. This bears thinking about. Good job, Naruto." Shikamaru stared thoughtfully at the pond for a few moments. Everyone sat quietly waiting for him to continue. Finally, he focused back on the group. "I guess it's my turn."

He sat up and crossed his legs resting his elbows on the sides of his knees. "I found three small farms in the area between the eastern and southern roads," he began his report.

"At the first farm, I found a middle-aged couple by the name of Shigematsu. Their farm was prosperous-looking and their house was large enough to accommodate a bigger family. I commented on their lack of children. Like Choji, I was told their two sons were away visiting relatives. When questioned, they knew nothing about a dead ninja or missing fan. They hadn't been to the village in the past week so they really knew nothing about the matter."

"At the second farm, I found a middle-aged couple with two daughters by the name of Morinaga. The farm was another prosperous-looking one. My experience with the pushy father was similar to Choji's. I also contended with the tiresomely flirtatious daughters. Like the other family, they knew nothing about a dead ninja or missing fan, but they'd heard about the investigation. I made my escape as quickly as possible after learning that," he said dryly.

When the chuckling had died down he continued. "The third farm was a little different, but not in its look of prosperity. The family was named Nakajo. It consisted of a young couple with two young children and the husband's sister. I found the fact that this was the first young man I'd seen in and around the village very interesting, but the fact that he had a broken leg I found even more interesting. I got the usual questions out of the way first. None of them had seen our dead ninja or missing fan. However, before I left I asked the young man if his leg was broken at the mine. He was surprised that I knew about the mine. Then he became suspicious that I knew about it. He wouldn't reveal any other information, so I left."

"A mine? So what?" Naruto asked in confusion. He didn't get the significance.

"Can anyone else answer Naruto's question?" He looked around, but no one else had caught on yet. It was an intuitive leap he had to make on his own.

He sighed. "I'll tell you what I've concluded. I think this village owns a mine. Further, I think the reason we've seen no young men in this village is that they're all working in the mine. The village girls attempt to attract husbands so that there are more young men to work the mine. The number of family members working in the mine must be significant. Perhaps their shares are determined by how many family members work it. The village is simply lucky that so many of their young women are attractive. Of course, they could be hiding the less attractive ones from our view. It would have been nice if the mayor had clued us in, but I can understand why they'd hide it from outsiders."

"What?" Naruto asked still having trouble with the idea.

"That's why all the girls have to stay in the village? That's why they're so intent on catching a husband. Greed? That sounds pretty horrible and sad to me," Choji said in disgust.

"Don't be too hard on them, Choji. A small village like this would have poverty issues if it didn't have a mine."

"What kind of mine?" Naruto asked finally taking to the idea.

"My guess would be gold, and not an excessively rich vein or they'd probably hire people to work the mine for them. I'd say it earns them enough for a more comfortable life, but not enough to quit their day jobs."

Does this have anything to do with our missions?" Temari asked impatiently.

"Probably not, but it clears up another mystery. The fewer mysteries we have to deal with the better."

Naruto jumped to his feet. "Are we finished? Can I go find Hinata now?"

"Sure. Go ahead."

After Naruto had streaked off, Shikamaru lay back on the grass, stretched out, stacked his hands behind his head and closed his eyes.

"Is he sleeping?" Daiki asked.

"Shush. We've got to be quiet. He's thinking," Temari admonished.

Shikamaru couldn't stop his mouth from shifting into a slight smile. It pleased him that Temari understood him so well. The only other person that came close was Choji, but they'd been best friends forever. Somehow it was more agreeable to have a girl understand him. But there was no time to dwell on personal things, he had a mystery to set his mind to while they waited for Hinata and Naruto to return.

* * *

Everyone was where he'd left them when Naruto came running back into the yard behind the inn almost two hours later. Shikamaru was lying prone on the ground. Choji and Daiki were playing sugoroku. Temari was lounging beside them watching the game.

"Shikamaru! I've been up and down the southern road a dozen times. Hinata's no where to be found. We've got to go look for her," Naruto demanded breathlessly as he came to a halt in front of the group, and bent over to catch his breath.

Shikamaru opened his eyes and sat up. "Did you check the restaurant?"

"I went there first. Something's wrong. I know it. We've got to go look for her," he said urgently.

"You're right. She should have been back by now. Let's go everyone."

He stood up, and every one followed suit without complaint. Naruto started to rush off, but Shikamaru put a hand on his shoulder. "Calm down, Naruto. Don't worry. We'll find her. But we can't go off half-cocked. This requires as much methodical procedure as everything else."

Naruto took a deep breath. "Okay, but let's not waste any time. It'll be dark in a few hours. We've got to find her." If anything happened to her—well, it just didn't bear thinking. Nothing could happen to her—not now that he'd just found the most perfect girl in the world. He just couldn't lose her. Not only was she pretty, talented and sweet, but she actually liked him. That in itself was so rare, he had to treasure it.

Hinata, please, be okay, he prayed. Please.


	16. Hinata on her own

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XVI. Hinata on her own

He held her hands. He looked deeply into her eyes. He urged earnestly, "Promise me you'll be careful out there, Hinata. Don't do anything rash. If you have any hint of danger at all—come back and get me. I'll always have your back. Good luck. I know you'll do great today."

She couldn't look at anyone, but Naruto, not just because she knew her face was blazing red—she just didn't see anyone but Naruto. When he finally released her hands she couldn't do anything more than mumble, "You, too, be careful and good luck," before turning quickly away to start out towards the southern end of the village. Her legs felt numb, she almost stumbled out the door, and she barely knew where she was going Naruto had dazzled her so completely.

There was so much more she could have said, and maybe should have said, but she'd never expected him to be so open in his good-bye. His concern, his intensity, his warm hands had almost the effect on her of his kiss. She thought he'd keep it as low-key today as he'd tried to do during their mission so far. She thought he wouldn't give even a hint in front of the others that he had some interest in her beyond that of a team mate. But there he'd been—holding her hands, looking into her eyes, talking so sweetly and sincerely. She'd been so dizzy with happiness that she'd forgotten to tell him the exact same thing in greater detail than he'd said to her. And as she left the inn, she began to worry about that.

After all, who was usually the rash one? Who was usually the one who didn't go for back up? Who was usually the one who needed to be reminded to be careful? Her careless, fearless Naruto that's who. She just hoped he'd listened to his own advice—and followed it. It was such a role reversal moment. That advice would have come more naturally from her. The one thing she'd liked to have reminded him was that she'd always have his back, too, anytime and anyplace.

In between the bouts of worry, she couldn't stop thinking about his kiss last night. Of the few they'd shared it had been the most wonderful yet—mostly because there hadn't been any pretense about it. Naruto had been kissing her, Hinata, and for no other reason than he wanted to. In fact, he'd seemed to enjoy it just as much as she did. It was a moment she cherished.

He'd held her so close she could feel his heart beat, and it had matched her own thudding so rapidly she thought her heart would burst from her chest. She'd felt so safe and secure in his arms. It's where she felt she belonged.

His hands had been so warm and tender as they'd touched her and caressed her. She'd felt their heat on her back, her waist, and a bit lower. She felt hot just thinking about the lower bit.

His mouth had been so warm and moist and sweet. She'd been shocked the first time his tongue had touched hers, but now she couldn't imagine kissing him without tasting him. It had been so intimate she'd wanted to melt.

And she hadn't allowed herself to just stand there clinging passively. She was embarrassed just thinking about her behavior—except that she wanted to do it all over again. She'd pressed herself against him. She'd stroked the back of his neck. She'd moved her tongue shyly against his. She loved him so much, she wanted to be as close as possible to him forever.

He made her feel things she'd never felt for anyone else—things she'd never thought to feel. Just being near him made her tingle and ache. It was a good thing she'd always been so quiet, unobtrusive and unnoticed, because if anyone really looked at her now they'd see the truth of her feelings. She was no longer just blushing and ducking her head around Naruto. She stared at him entranced. She couldn't hide the expression in her eyes or that he was the only one she wanted to look at. She was like a flower turning towards the sun when Naruto was near. She was just lucky the guys weren't as comfortable teasing her as they did Naruto or she'd be in a continual state of harassment.

Naturally her worrying knew no bounds, and began to leak into her replay of his kiss. It went from worrying about Naruto's safety on the mission to Naruto's true feelings for her.

Weren't guys capable of kissing girls even when they didn't care for them? What if Naruto just enjoyed kissing? Maybe she could be anyone. Maybe if Ino or Tenten had taken that original mission, they'd be kissing Naruto now. Maybe she wasn't special at all.

Her thoughts jumbled around in her head in even more painful ways.

What if Naruto couldn't love her? What if she were just a rebound from Sakura? What if Sakura decided to dump Lee and go after Naruto? What if some other girl decided to go after him? Naruto was so wonderful how could any girl not see that? All these flirtatious girls in the village were after him, and she had so many potential rivals in just Konoha, it didn't bear thinking. How could he possibly choose her above every one else?

He seemed to be interested in her, but what if it was only the excitement of a mission that made him notice her. They'd been thrown together like never before so he had no choice but to pay attention to her. Maybe without a mission he'd see her for what she really was—a plain, shy, weird girl. That had been his description of her when they were younger, and it had suited her then. Had she really changed enough to catch his attention now? Couldn't that description still fit her? Who else had ever noticed her potential besides Kurenai and Tsuande? And they were women so they weren't looking at her in the way a guy would.

What did Naruto really see when he looked at her? He called her amazing, but that was in regards to their last mission. He thought her shugo hake rokujuu yon shou was awesome and graceful, but that was only admiration for her fighting skills. He'd said she was a nice person, but he could say that about anyone. He'd said she was almost perfect, but he'd been talking about her fighting skills then, too. He thought she was bold, but she'd only been bold when she had to protect him. When she'd told him she liked him he hadn't said anything back. Maybe because he didn't really like her the way she wanted him to.

It was almost better to have remained unrequited in love simply loving him from afar than to have him finally tell her he couldn't love her. Maybe he was being so sweet only because he felt guilty and was sorry for her. Maybe when all was said and done he couldn't really do it.

Just the thought of that scenario gave her a sharp pain deep in her chest. Calm down, Hinata, she told herself taking deep breaths.

She had to stop over thinking this or she'd drive herself crazy. Don't borrow trouble. Naruto seems to like you. He wants to go out with you. They were going on a date when they returned to Konoha. That's a start. Maybe with the tension of a mission out from under them, he'd discover that she would make a very nice girlfriend.

How pathetic! She wanted to be more than just a _nice girlfriend_. She wanted to be the one and only perfect girlfriend for Naruto. How she wished she had more self-confidence. How could Naruto possibly love a girl without confidence? He had so much himself, surely he'd want a girlfriend who was more his equal? Was that why he hadn't said anything about liking her? Was he waiting for her to make the first move? Would she have to tell him how she felt first? Oh my!

She put her hands over her cheeks where she alternated between pale and flushed depending on her thoughts. She had to concentrate on this mission and stop thinking so much about Naruto. When they returned to Konoha, she'd find out for sure what Naruto really thought of her. They'd have their date. If he liked her enough, they'd have another, then another. Missions would interfere, but slowly they'd get to know each other. Eventually—well—eventually she wanted a future with Naruto. She wanted love, marriage and children with him. She'd only recently allowed herself to imagine that rosy future.

But, if he decided he only wanted her as a friend, she'd try to be satisfied with that. She'd have to bear watching him with some other girl. She'd try to be happy for him, because she wanted him to be happy. But she could never be happy with someone else. She couldn't imagine loving any one else let alone marrying any or having someone else's children. For her it was Naruto or no one. Since she was no longer her father's heir there was no pressure for her to marry. She'd just remain single like Tsunade. She didn't seem unhappy with her single life so maybe Hinata could manage, too.

Her conflicting thoughts came to an abrupt end as she reached the outskirts of the village and the southern road.

She'd decided to walk the perimeter of her section south to west first. She'd then search from the farthest section inward so she'd end up near the village when she finished. That seemed the most methodical approach to her. She hoped Shikamaru would approve. He hadn't given them any advice on how to search. Perhaps, he thought his lecture on methodical procedure was enough of a hint. She wondered how Naruto and the others were doing it.

She passed the place where the dead ninja possibly named Hidekatsu was found, and she passed the tree stump where Mr. Shibuya sat to rest on his trips to and from the village Those were the only landmarks she recognized on the road going south. She wondered where Mr. Shibuya's cabin was in her search area.

She walked along another km. or so after the landmarks, and found a small wayfarer's shack at the side of the road. It was just one small room that could accommodate about four sleeping forms comfortably with a hole in the wood floor surrounded by rocks to catch the sparks from a fire. There was a pile of wood in one corner and a sign above it that said "_Please leave this place as it was found_." The pile of wood had spider's webs on the side of it. There was undisturbed dust on the floor before she tracked through it, and the fire pit was cleared of ashes. It didn't look like anyone had been there for some time.

She used her Byakugan, but still saw nothing amiss with the shack. There was nothing to lead her to believe that this place had witnessed the attack on the ninja. There were no signs of a struggle or blood. She didn't believe this shack had anything to do with their mystery.

She left the shack and walked a little further down the road until she thought she'd walked about 3 km. altogether. She could no longer see the shack when she decided to head into the woods. The sun was still in the east, and she noticed that it was actually slightly southeast which meant that past noon it would be heading northwest. It would help her to keep her bearings by remembering the path of the sun.

There was no particular reason for her to choose the area she did except that there were a few blue flowers the color of Naruto's eyes growing at that spot. She carefully stepped over them and headed into the woods.

As she walked, she noticed the gradual thinning of trees to make way for rocky outcroppings. The trees would clump together in the small clearings between the rocks. With Mount Hakudoshi looming in the southwest, she realized that this area could be considered part of the mountain since the village sat at its foot.

After she'd walked about 2 km., out of the corner of her eye to the north, something caught her attention. She peered into a large clump of trees some distance away, and noticed something within. She walked closer and discovered a cabin tucked away inside. It was the same color as the trees surrounding it which made it very well camouflaged. She'd only noticed it because the sun streaking through the tree branches had highlighted a shiny nail in the roof that blinked as the branches moved with the breeze.

If she stayed consistent with her search plan, the cabin wasn't in her search area until she doubled back after reaching the western road, but she thought this must be Mr. Shibuya's cabin. She should stop and let him know that she was in the area. She didn't want him to be alarmed if he heard or saw her unexpectedly.

She made her way towards the cabin noticing how cleverly it was built among the trees. It really did look as if it were part of the forest. There was a rise of rocks behind it that made her wonder if his mine were nearby, too.

The cabin was small, only half a size larger than the wayfarer's shack. It was made all of wood except for the foundation of earth-colored stones it sat on. There were two steps leading up to the door, and no windows in the front.

She walked carefully up the steps, and knocked on the door. She couldn't hear any sound from within the cabin not even a dog moving around. After about a minute, she knocked again. There was still no answer. Mr. Shibuya must be at his mine with his dog, Saki.

She hesitated a moment, and put her hand on the door knob. It turned easily, and she pushed the door opened slightly. Should she go inside or just look around from the doorway? Would Shikamaru expect her to go inside even though she hadn't been invited? Naruto would do it, she was sure, so that settled it. She slowly pushed the door open to look inside.

It was cleaner than the wayfarer's shack. There was a rolled futon in the corner. There were cooking utensils near a fire pit in the floor to the left of the door. There was a square, straw basket with some folded clothes on top. There was a water bowl and food dish on the floor to the right of the door. There was a pair of slippers just inside the door. It was bare, but looked lived-in.

She thought of Mr. Shibuya living there all alone, and spending his days in a dark mine eking out a living. She wondered if he'd ever been married or had grown children somewhere. What would he do if he became ill or couldn't mine anymore? Who would take care of him? Would the villagers do it? The idea saddened her.

She saw nothing alarming in the cabin. There were no signs of a struggle or blood that she could see. However, to make her search complete she used her Byakugan.

Looking at the floor, she started in surprise as she saw a hollow directly beneath the right half of the floor and a tunnel that led off to the north. Was that where Mr. Shibuya's mine was located? That would be convenient for him.

The tunnel went on beyond her vision. She studied the area below. She saw small areas of chakra that were probably rats, mice, moles or snakes. Many animals had small amounts of chakra. But she didn't see an amount significant enough to be a person. Even a person with little chakra was easy to recognize because the chakra channels were there even if they weren't used.

She also saw the ladder-like stairs

She walked over to the section of the floor where the stairs led down. There had to be a way to get down to the tunnel from where she was standing. She studied the floor and noticed a fine crack that shaped a square area approximately 50 x 50 cm. She also noticed the half-mooned shaped groove in the side of the square. Ordinarily she would have just thought it to be a flaw in the wood, but because of its placement it had to have some significance.

She stepped off the square and slid her fingers into the groove. She pressed, she pushed and nothing happened. She studied it again with her Byakugan, then she lifted. The 50 x 50 square rose up from the floor silently on folding metal hinges.

She saw the stairs leading down into the hole which had a 5 cm. rim that the cover rested on so it wouldn't fall in. By using her Byakugan she wouldn't need a light to check out this area. She could look around a little, and hope if she ran into Mr. Shibuya he wouldn't be angry at her trespass. He probably wouldn't want anyone to know about the entrance to his mine. She would promise to keep it a secret even from her team mates if it had nothing to do with their mystery.

She stepped into the hole facing the stairs. It actually looked more like a ladder now that she was using them, but it felt sturdy and anchored.

She noticed an iron ring with a linked chain hanging beneath the square cover for the stairs. That must be how Mr. Shibuya closed the hole so anyone entering his cabin when he wasn't there wouldn't find his mine. She didn't want to reveal his secret, so she pulled the chain as she carefully climbed down the stairs.

It was farther down than she thought. She hadn't counted the stairs from above, but did so now. There were thirty leading down to the bottom.

When her right foot finally reached the dirt floor, she put her left foot beside it and lowered her arms preparing to turn when she felt something hard at her back and what felt like a metal vice pin her arms to her sides. Before she could react, a cloth was placed over her face and involuntarily she breathed in something sweet and cloying.

The darkness around her became even darker as her eyes rolled back into her head, and she began to lose consciousness. Her last thought was _Naruto_—.


	17. To the rescue

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XVII. To the rescue

_Hinata._

His chest hurt.

His heart thumped painfully.

He couldn't breathe.

He couldn't focus his eyes.

His vision seemed full of black holes.

He couldn't think.

His head had only one thought in it.

_Hinata._

What could have happened? When it functioned at all, his mind could only conjure up the most horrible pictures. The most prominent was Hinata lying in the icehouse with no face, no hands, no feet, and a hole where her heart should be.

_Hinata_

He'd never sensed anything.

Why hadn't he sensed something? Of course, he wasn't psychic, but shouldn't he have known somehow when something had happened to her? Didn't he have a connection to her now? Why couldn't he have felt a definite presentiment or foreboding that could have moved everyone to the rescue more quickly? Instead, he'd only known impatience with waiting for her to get back. Why had he sat there listening to those useless, boring reports when he should have harried the group out to search for her? Why had he trusted Shikamaru's reading of the situation? He obviously wasn't as omniscient as he pretended.

_Hinata._

Had she called out for help? Was she hurt? Was she in pain? Was she unconscious? Was she—no! He wouldn't think that. He couldn't think that. He had to get those awful pictures out of his head. He wouldn't believe it was too late.

_Hinata._

She was strong. She was smart. She was a talented kunoichi. Her petite, demure looks were deceptive. He would've bet she could handle herself in almost any situation. She wouldn't leave them hanging if she could help it. Where could she be?

_Hinata._

Impatiently, he waited for Shikamaru to deal with that asshole innkeeper trying to tell them about that lame dinner the dipshit mayor had gotten together for them to be on display for the dumbass villagers. Who the hell cared about a dinner with people he didn't even like when Hinata was missing? Why couldn't those dumbass people leave them the hell alone? Couldn't they see the team was in a hurry to get out of there?

_Hinata._

He felt the nine-tailed stir as his emotions roiled ferociously around within him. Anger, fear, anxiety, pain, frustration, despair took turns attacking him mentally and physically. Why had he even come back for his team mates? He should have combed Hinata's entire search area before coming back. More than that—he should have found her before coming back. Why did he think Shikamaru would know what to do? He's the one who sent them out individually when they should have been paired. Naruto should have been with Hinata then this would never have happened.

_Hinata._

Why weren't they busting ass already? These guys were only holding him up while they diplomatically dealt with the villagers. Couldn't they appreciate the gravity of this situation? Who was more important here—some dumbass strangers or a vital team mate. _He had to find her_.

_Hinata._

Not only did that asshole innkeeper try to stop them, but it seemed like everybody in the village was hanging around the inn trying to question them or talk about the dinner—from that dipshit mayor to that bastard constable. Shikamaru politely blew off each one, far more politely than Naruto could have done. He only wanted to yell at them to get the hell out of his way or he'd mow them down, but he kept his mouth shut—just barely. Unfortunately, Shikamaru's method was taking too much time.

_Hinata._

His hands clenched.

His lips curled back to show bared teeth.

His eyes narrowed into feral slits.

He felt the heat of the nine-tailed's chakra stir within him.

At the next interception, he was ready to erupt when Temari touched her palm to his cheek. When he turned his angry eyes to hers, she stared into them intently saying quietly and calmly, "Naruto. Listen to me. You helped save Gaara. I'll help save Hinata. Stay focused on the goal. Don't lose it now."

He felt the quiet, calmness and grounding she imparted from the touch of her hand, the intensity of her gaze and, her low steady voice stamp down the threat building inside him. The fire and need were still there, but it was under control—for now.

_Hinata._

Choji punched him lightly on the arm. He'd seen Naruto like this before, but only in the heat of battle. This was something new, but he should have expected it seeing how close he and Hinata had become. Well, he could be just as sympathetic and supportive as Temari. "Come on. Let's go on ahead. Shikamaru will catch up." He sent Shikamaru a meaningful look, cocking his head in Naruto's direction.

They moved south at a fast clip, ignoring everyone else, leaving Shikamaru to handle the villagers trying to stop them. Temari and Choji kept everyone well away from Naruto while Daiki had their backs.

_Hinata._

They waited outside the village for Shikamaru. Naruto bounced around impatiently, growling at every step. _Come on, come on_, he thought. Every second could be of vital importance. Hinata, needed him. _He had to find her._

_Hinata._

The waiting felt like an interminable amount of time to him, but was only about five minutes before Shikamaru showed up moving a little quicker than usual. Naruto was ready to take off as soon as he saw the whites of Shikamaru's eyes. But Temari and Choji flanked him to prevent him from doing anything rash.

"Naruto! Hold up! We've got to do this methodically," Shikamaru called out before Naruto could shake off his guards and run off into the trees.

He clenched his fists, turned his back to the forest and said fiercely, "Damn it, Shikamaru! I'm getting tired of that stupid word. Whatever happened could have happened this morning not just a few hours ago. She needs us now. Let's just search already."

Shikamaru crossed his arms. "Do you or don't you want to find her?"

"Don't be stupid! Of course, I want to find her!" he practically yelled.

"Then let's do this right. Methodical is a boring word and often a tedious activity, but it works every time."

Naruto stomped in place. "Fine—but let's just get on with it."

"Okay, everybody line up on the side of the road. Now spread out by arms length. We're going to walk towards the western road, each person looking for any signs of a struggle, a hiding place, anything belonging to Hinata, or just plain anything that looks out of place. Look up, look down, look behind, look in every possible nook and cranny since we don't know what we're looking for or what to expect. When we reach the other road we'll move down to search the next section. This might seem like the slowest way to do it, but it's the only way we won't overlook anything however small. If we come up to a dwelling, we'll all investigate it—_methodically_—but I'll ask the questions. Got that? Then let's get started."

They followed Shikamaru's directions, and started their search.

_Hinata._

Naruto poured over every centimeter of the ground around him. He did more than look up and look down; he climbed up every tree in his section; he looked into every bush; he moved every large or medium sized rock; he prodded even the smallest hole. If Hinata was hidden anywhere near him, he would find her. _He had to find her._

_Hinata._

There were no shouts of '_Come look at this!,_' or '_I found something!_,' or most important '_She's here!_' from anyone. Naruto despaired every time they turned and began to search a new section. They were all coming up empty on every turn. There wasn't even a camp let alone a house in any of the area they searched. It was almost as if no one had ever walked through that sparse forest or climbed any of its rocky mounds. Did that mean Hinata had never made it to her search area? Maybe she'd been waylaid on the road and taken someplace else. How would they ever find her then?

_Hinata._

He shook his head briskly trying to shake out the negative thoughts. He couldn't feel defeated—not yet. Whatever it took, he'd do it to find her. He wouldn't rest until she was found so it didn't matter if they found nothing here. He'd just keep looking forever if necessary.

_Hinata._

When they came to the wayfarer's shack, Naruto's heart began to beat more quickly. This was the only habitation they'd found so far, and they were almost finished with the area Hinata had been assigned. It didn't matter that it was sitting right there on the side of the road for anybody to find. This had to be it. There had to be some sign here that would lead them to Hinata.

_Hinata._

Shikamaru made them stand at the doorway to look around before going inside. He didn't want them messing up any clues fumbling around in such a small area.

"Look! There are tracks in the dust!" Naruto exclaimed and started forward, but Shikamaru bared his way.

"Wait a minute. You'll obliterate them. Let me look at them first." He crouched down and studied the prints going across and around the tiny room. "They're small prints—a child or small woman's. They look precise as if they were made by someone walking carefully around the room."

"You mean searching?" Choji asked eagerly.

"That's my take on it. Although the prints cover themselves, I don't see anything that suggests a struggle. I think those prints are Hinata's and she searched this shack. Based on the prints, I think she came and went from this shack willingly." Shikamaru sat back on his heels.

"So there's nothing here?" Naruto asked dejectedly. His shoulders slumped and he leaned against the outside wall of the shack as if he couldn't stand on his on any longer. He took a deep breath. She'd been here. She hadn't been attacked here. He had to look on that as a positive. Maybe they were getting closer.

Shikamaru rubbed his chin, and stood up. "Probably not, but let's search anyway. Temari, you and I will search inside. The rest of you circle around outside. Walk carefully. Don't obliterate any signs. Look under and on top of the shack as well."

Naruto, Choji and Daiki carefully searched the perimeters. It took them all of two minutes since the place was so small. There was no room under the shack to hide anyone or anything. There was nothing on the small roof. There was nothing around the outside. There was nothing in the trees or rocky ground around the shack that indicated a struggle. Hinata must have left the shack on her on two feet just as Shikamaru surmised.

Temari and Shikamaru came out about two minutes later shaking their heads. They'd found nothing significant inside either.

"Sorry, Naruto," Temari said. She put her hand on his shoulder. "I don't think anyone's used this place in a long time. That's why there was so much dust on the floor. At least we know Hinata had been here."

He nodded his head. His throat felt suddenly too swollen to speak. He knew that much as well, but he'd been hoping to find something more that would lead them somewhere definite. He hated this state of not knowing anything.

"Let's continue our search the way we'd begun. We should be getting close to the end of Hinata's search area. If we don't find anything in the next four crossings, we'll keep going for another kilometer," Shikamaru told them. They took their places and begin their methodical search again beside the shack.

_Hinata._

Naruto felt his anxiety rise. He'd felt so certain they'd finally found something when they'd found signs of human habitation. _Hinata, where are you? _he cried out silently.

_Hinata._

It was on their way back from the western road that they stumbled upon a small cabin. It was backed up to a raised, rocky mound and surrounded by trees. Naruto found it first by jumping on the roof from the mound. He'd actually been jumping to a tree branch, but when he'd noticed the dark, smooth, sloping roof in the shade of the trees, he'd changed direction hitting the roof at its peak. He held on with chakra targeting the soles of his feet. He walked around on top searching, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. The only thing marring the smooth surface was a small vent for smoke. Otherwise, it was just a typical roof.

When he jumped down, the others were waiting for him at the foot of the two steps leading up to the door. Shikamaru and Choji had already circled around checking the ground surrounding the cabin and the rocky foundation. Temari and Daiki circled further out searching through the clump of trees hiding the cabin.

"Did you see anything out of place up there?"

Naruto shook his head. "Did you guys see anything?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary."

"Did you knock on the door yet?"

"No, but I doubt anyone's in there or your tramping around on the roof would have had him checking things out by now."

"Do you think this is Mr. Shibuya's place?" Choji asked.

"Undoubtedly, but we'll know or sure when we go inside."

Shikamaru led the way. He knocked first then he opened the door, crouched down and studied the room just as he'd done with the wayfarer's shack. The others peered over his head studying the room on their own.

It was cleaner than the wayfarer's shack. There was a rolled futon in the corner. There were cooking utensils near a fire pit in the floor to the left of the door. There was a square, straw basket with some folded clothes on top. There was a water bowl and food dish on the floor to the right of the door. There was a pair of slippers just inside the door. It was bare, but looked lived-in.

There was only the faintest of dust on the floor, but it was scuffed. Shikamaru could make out some dog prints, some large human prints, and some smaller human prints. He pointed these out to the others.

"I think Hinata's been here, too."

"We didn't see any signs of her closer to the village. What do you think that means?" Choji asked.

"There were no dwellings in the area we've already searched so if she was careful we wouldn't find any signs of her search," he stood up. "Another explanation is that she started her search at the farthest end."

"What does that mean?" Naruto demanded.

"I'm not sure. Unless we find some evidence of a struggle, we have to assume she went wherever she is under her own steam."

"But she still could have been threatened somehow. She might not have gone willingly even if we've seen no obvious signs."

Shikamaru shrugged. "It's too soon to speculate. Let's just search the cabin. If we don't find anything here, we'll continue searching along the road. Since we've already searched outside, and there's enough room, you can all come inside to look around this time."

They all trooped in. It would have been crowded if they'd all been living there, but to just search it wasn't too bad. They left the door open which helped the claustrophobic feeling. However, even with four searchers, there wasn't much to see in the cabin that they hadn't already seen from the doorway.

"What do you think, Shikamaru?" Choji asked when he saw his friend stop looking around, and sit down on top of the folded futon.

"There's no food in here."

"What?"

"Mr. Shibuya goes to the market once a week for supplies. He just went shopping a few days ago. Where are they?"

"Maybe he ate everything already. Maybe he took the last of his supplies with him to his mine. Who cares?" Naruto demanded.

"You could be right. I just think it's strange. I think this entire cabin is a little strange."

"How do you mean?" Temari asked looking around. Nothing appeared unusual to her.

"It just seems staged. Maybe the guy does live simply or he's super neat, but it just seems a little too simple and too neat. It doesn't even smell like a dog lives here."

Temari looked around again in light of what Shikamaru suggested. It might be so, but what did it mean? She asked the question aloud.

"I don't know. It's just a thought." Shikamaru shrugged.

"Maybe we should wait to talk to Mr. Shibuya," Choji suggested. "Hinata might have talked to him. He might know where she was going next."

"I can't just sit here and wait!" Naruto exclaimed. "I have to keep searching."

"Calm down, Naruto. We'll all keep searching until we find her," Temari said sharply.

"I can't calm down. Don't you understand?" He stomped hard on the floor. "_I have to find her_." This time he stomped even harder on the floor using a lot more power than he should because he was channeling all his anger and anxiety into his feet. He used so much power that he broke right through the floor boards.

"Naruto!" Temari cried out as he disappeared into a black hole beneath the wood floor.

Shikamaru, Choji, and Daiki all rushed over to encircle the broken wooden floor.

"Stand back. If the floor's weak, I don't want anyone else falling through," Shikamaru told the others. "Interesting that the rock foundation isn't solid." On his knees, he leaned cautiously forward to peer down into the blackness. "Naruto! Are you hurt?"

"Not really. I had a padded landing—on my ass." he called up half sitting, half lying down. He'd been surprised, but had still managed to curl his body in position to suffer the least amount of damage in the fall.

It was totally dark in the hole he'd fallen into. His eyes were still adjusting to the darkness so he couldn't see very much. Instead of standing, he crouched and listened. Besides the footsteps and murmurs overhead, he heard something else. He wasn't sure what it was. He listened harder. Was someone down here? Or was it an animal? He continued to listen. There were no sounds of breathing, but he heard a soft shuffle in the dirt on the ground.

"Hey, there's something down here!" he called up again.

"We're looking for a light and some rope. We'll be with you in a minute," Choji answered.

Naruto saw a large shape loom threateningly blocking the faint light shining down from the hole in the floor above. Instinctively, he raised his arms, jumped up and struck out with his hands and feet.

"Hey!" he yelled as he punched.

He hit something hard knocking it into a wall or whatever. It hadn't felt fleshy, scaly or boney like any human or animal he knew. It had felt hard like rock or metal. What the hell was down here with him?


	18. To the rescue redux

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XVIII. To the rescue redux

Whatever that thing was it didn't know when to quit. It got up and came after him again with its arms outstretched as if to hug him.

Naruto thrust out his leg and rammed his foot against the middle of the thing slamming it once more into the wall. Dirt and small rocks rained down over it from above making Naruto uncomfortably aware that they were underground. He looked up uneasily. He didn't know what exactly was bracing the walls and ceiling of this hole he was in. He hoped it was strong enough to withstand this fight. He certainly didn't want a cave-in, but he wasn't going to let that thing get close to him either. It seemed to want to get a hold of him rather than hit him which didn't seem like a good thing either way. He stood braced and ready as he watched it get up and approach him again.

They repeated their little approach and slam dance nine more times before the thing finally lay unmoving amidst the pile of dirt and rocks that had been jarred from the wall and ceiling due to Naruto's powerful slams.

Meanwhile up above…

"I can't find any rope anywhere in this place," Choji declared.

"Me neither," said Daiki.

"We could tear the futon apart and tie the pieces together," Temari suggested.

"Let's not get that drastic yet," Shikamaru said with a smile just for her. He could count on her to have a practical suggestion. "We'll start with light first. Choji, start a fire in the pit. Don't use all the small pieces of firewood. We'll use them for makeshift torches."

When Choji had the fire going, Shikamaru lit the end of one of the small branches. He knelt over Naruto's hole in the floor and lowered his light inside. Lying on his stomach he stretched out his legs. "Hey, Choji, hold onto my legs so I don't fall in," he requested. He felt Choji take hold of one leg, and another pair of hands took his other leg. He looked back over his shoulder to see Temari holding on to him. He could always rely on Choji to back him up, but it was nice to know someone else would be there, too—particularly a female someone. His father had lectured him once when he was young about women. He'd just seen his father's relationship with his mother as being pussy-whipped at the time, but now he could appreciate the mutual benefits of indulging a woman even in the little things. He gave her a pleased smile and slid forward lowering his head into the hole to look around.

He could hear Naruto fighting, but he couldn't see much of it. His makeshift torch didn't light very far without an accelerant like oil on the end. However, it did light enough area for him to see the ladder-like stairs to the left of his position.

That was all he needed to see. "Okay, I'm done here. Help me get out of this hole," he told the two holding onto him.

They pulled him back so most of his weight was once more on a sturdy surface. Shikamaru partially rolled over and handed Choji the lighted branch, but he didn't get up. Instead, he rolled onto his stomach, pressed his hands on the floor and drew up on his knees. He then scooted across the floor to the area where the stairs from below seemed to lead up.

"That was quick. What did you see down there?" Temari asked curiously watching Shikamaru's antics. She didn't like not knowing what was going on. She also had an inexplicable need to always know what Shikamaru was thinking. He was difficult to second guess. She liked that about him, but it kept her off balance. She wasn't used to feeling insecure. She'd always been extremely self-confident. One day she promised herself, she'd know how to read him—maybe not perfectly, but enough to be confident about their relationship. Most of her behavior with him so far had been a brazen front. Once he stopped allowing her to take the lead, she anticipated a very exciting and satisfying courtship. She couldn't wait.

"Stairs," he responded briefly, his attention on the floor.

"Unh? How can there be stairs?" Choji demanded staring at what looked like a solid wooden floor to him.

"That's just what I'm going to find out."

Scanning the area, he noticed the fine 60 x 60 cm. square crack in the wood. Now that he knew in particular what he needed to look for, he also noticed the small half-moon shaped groove in one side of the square. He put his fingers into the groove. They slipped snuggly inside. He pushed down, left, right, forward and back, but nothing happened. Then, he lifted and up came the cover to the stairs—easily and silently on metal hinges. He noted the dangling chain knowing immediately its purpose.

"Hey, a trap door. What do you know?" Choji admired the cleverness of the thing. He'd never have guessed. Until Naruto fell through the floor, he'd assumed the rock foundation was solid beneath the cabin.

"Hand me my torch." He held out his hand and Choji touched the unlit end to his palm not releasing it until Shikamaru closed his fist around it. He stepped into the opening carefully walking down the stairs until he could feel a railing to hold onto.

"Everybody grab a light and follow me. Let's get down there and see what Naruto's been up to." The crashing of metal and rock intermingled with Naruto's grunts had finally stopped. He hoped that meant that Naruto had successfully defeated his opponent.

"I'm never going to fit in that small opening," Choji announced eyeing the new hole doubtfully.

Shikamaru paused with his head and shoulders still visible through the opening. "It is a bit tight. What about the hole Naruto made?"

Choji walked over and sized it up. "Yeah. I think it's a little bigger. I should be able to get through that."

"Wait up here. Close this trap door behind us. When we get to the bottom if it's all clear I'll call up to you. You can jump down. Meanwhile bank the fire. We don't want to burn down the cabin while we're gone."

"Okay. That'll work for me," he agreed and watched Shikamaru, Temari, then Daiki disappear down the proper exit.

Naruto's eyes were finally adjusting to the darkness. When the new light source of the open trap door as well as his teammates accompanied by dim torches began to appear, he was surprised to notice the stairs. He was glad his little anger stomp hadn't been over them. That could have hurt worst than just landing on the ground. Plus he would have ruined the easy path for his teammates to take down into what he assumed was old man Shibuya's mine.

Since there was no more movement from his attacker, he cautiously approached the recumbent figure.

It was shaped like a man. It had a head, torso, arms and legs. It wore blue pants and a shirt. It seemed to have hands and boot-like feet. In its right hand it held a white cloth. He couldn't tell what the thing was. He'd have to wait for Shikamaru's superior intellect to study it. He'd probably be able to figure out something about it.

He waited impatiently for his teammates to arrive before going any closer. That thing could be tricky. It might try to grab his ankle if he got too close. He felt it was safer not to get into its metal embrace. If the thing were made of metal it would be hard to break its hold if it managed to pin Naruto down.

"Everybody stand back from Naruto's hole in the floor so Choji can get down here," Shikamaru ordered after Daiki had reached the bottom of the stairs. They followed his command and stood aside. He handed Temari his torch, cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled up into the hole, "Come on down, Choji."

Choji jumped down through the hole scraping his arm on the jagged edge of one side. It wasn't quite big enough for him after all. He tore his sleeve, but luckily not his flesh. He didn't want to be already wounded if they had to do some fighting soon. And fighting seemed likely to rescue Hinata.

"I heard that rip. You didn't cut yourself did you, Choji?" Shikamaru asked with concern.

"Naw. It's just a tear in my sleeve."

"Hey, what about me? I was down here fighting off that thing while you guys were sitting safely upstairs. Ask me if I'm hurt." Naruto demanded indignantly.

"Well, are you?"

"I think my foot's bruised black and blue. That thing is hard. I kicked it about ten times. It's got to be made of metal."

"Well, let's take a look at it and we'll see." Shikamaru brought his light over to the man-like thing lying on the ground.

"Don't get too close. I think it was trying to grab me not fight me. If it's still got any life left it might try again," he warned.

They all gathered at a safe distance around the thing on the ground. Everyone with a torch held it close so they could study it.

In the meager light, it looked more and yet less like a man. It did have a face of sorts. There were indentations for eyes, a protruding area for a nose, and a slash for a mouth. It was definitely wearing real clothes. It seemed to be made of metal. The rivets in the joins were clear from the torn pant legs and shirt sleeves. It was a brownish color possibly bronze or rust.

"What do you make of it, Shikamaru?" Naruto asked. "It kinda looks familiar, but I don't know why."

"A metal man. I wonder how it worked. If it was a puppet like Temari's brother's creatures then there should be strings and a puppet master would be nearby. Right Temari?"

"That's how Kankuro's puppets work. They don't act independently of him," Temari agreed. She looked around in the gloom. Was there a puppet master nearby? "Do you think it's a puppet, Shikamaru? Shouldn't we be on guard?"

"We should always be on guard, but I don't think this is a puppet. All it tried to do was grab you, right Naruto?"

"Yeah, I think so. It just keep getting up and coming towards me with its arms outstretched. If the thing was trying to fight then it was pretty stupid about it. There was no strategy at all."

Shikamara prodded the thing with his foot, but it didn't respond. He walked to its right side and crouched down. He lifted the hand with the cloth and brought it slowly closer to his face. He smelled the sweet, cloying smell on the cloth before he'd gotten it too close to him, and immediately dropped the hand which fell with a dull clang against the rocks. He stood up quickly and breathed deeply to get that smell out of his nostrils.

"What is it?" Temari asked in concern as she watched him shake his head as he breathed.

"Chloroform."

"What's that?"

"It's an anesthetic formerly used for surgery before trained medical ninja. I suppose it's still used by ordinary healers."

"What does it do?"

"It knocks you out basically. It's pretty quick, too. All you have to do is breathe it in."

"Do you suppose that's what happened to Hinata?" Naruto asked anxiously.

"That would be the reason she seemed to have disappeared without a struggle. If this metal man caught her by surprise, and had that cloth over her nose and mouth before she could react, she'd pass out without a chance to fight back."

"We don't even know if Hinata found those stairs," Temari argued.

"Sure we do. She's got the Byakugan. She would easily have seen those stairs. The entrance wasn't locked nor was it very tricky to open. She didn't have the presence of mind or luck to fall on the ground like Naruto did. If she came down the stairs just as we did her back would have been to that metal man. Naruto said it tried to grab him—well, it probably grabbed Hinata with one arm pining hers to her side, and forced the chloroform cloth over her face before she could react."

"If that's true—where is she now?" Naruto demanded looking around. He hadn't thought to look around before, but then he'd been busy. Fortunately or unfortunately, he didn't see any signs of her now. He almost wished he could see her sleeping peacefully somewhere in the vicinity of the stairs. That would definitely relieve the considerable anxiety he continued to suffer while Hinata remained absent.

"Someone or something must have carried her down this tunnel," he pointed in the darkness to the north.

"So she's not hurt or—or dead?" Naruto asked fear still clawing at his chest.

"I don't think she is. This metal man isn't designed to kill. It's designed to render intruders unconscious with chloroform. We just have to find out where she was taken. Okay everyone let's look around here first. We could really use a lantern. These branches may not last long enough for us to reach the end of the tunnel. Plus they're not particularly bright. We might miss something important under this dim light."

"I could go back upstairs for more. We can just keep lighting them as we need them," Choji suggested.

"You'd never make it up those stairs. Remember? You don't fit. Let's look around. Maybe Mr. Shibuya kept some extra lanterns down here. We'll send Daiki back upstairs for more branches if we need them."

They searched around the stairs. The cave or tunnel ended just a few meters past the stairs. Shikamaru's guess about lanterns had been correct. They found three in a corner behind the stairs. They were filled with oil and ready for use. Choji lighted them and handed one to Temari who gestured for Daiki to take it. She had her oversized fan to carry and she wanted to keep one hand free. He handed the other one to Shikamaru, and kept the third for himself. He decided Naruto might not be trusted with one of their few light sources. Who knew when he might go off half-cocked if he found some evidence of Hinata or another enemy to fight?

"What about me?" Naruto demanded when he didn't get a lantern.

"You should keep your hands free in case we're attacked. You're probably the best fighter," Choji suggested somewhat truthfully.

Naruto was completely susceptible to flattery. "Okay," he said agreeably satisfied with that answer. He could thoroughly appreciate Choji's logic.

Shikamaru gave Choji a congratulatory pat on the back. He'd handled Naruto just as well as Shikamaru could have done. It was nice to see that his faith in his team's mental abilities was completely justified.

"Choji, you take the lead. Naruto next, then Daiki, then Temari, and I'll take the end. Spread out a little. We don't need to maintain a single file. Keep a watch on all sides ahead and behind. You know the old strategy of picking off a column from the end. I trust Temari will keep an eye on me so I don't get picked off first."

"Always," she promised not caring how the others interpreted that.

"Great. Let's go."

They moved down the tunnel. It was about 6 meters wide and 8 meters tall. The walls were braced with strong thick wooden columns. The ceiling was a series of thick wooden planks with small gaps showing solidly packed earth. About 3 meters along the tunnel they came upon a single metal railroad type track.

"What's the hell's this for?" Naruto demanded angrily rubbing the foot he'd already hurt on the metal man. He'd been the first one to find the track by tripping over it.

"It's probably for a dump car. Miners needed to remove the dirt as they dug so they had containers shaped like a deep trough on wheels that could be filled and then pushed to the mine shaft, raised and the dirt dumped elsewhere. They're designed to run on a track like a train to make it easier to move. They can have engines also like a train or be pushed manually."

"How do you know all that?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "My head's full of useful and useless information. I just seem to absorb whatever I read or hear. I wouldn't exactly call it a blessing. There are things I'd like to forget but can't. Let's continue. Be more careful, Naruto. I told you to watch everywhere. Did I neglect to tell you to look down as well?"

They started down the tunnel again.

Naruto had never thought of himself as claustrophobic, but he didn't like this tunnel. He'd handle it as long as he believed it would lead him to Hinata. He would suffer any torment to reach Hinata even close spaces, stale, almost unbreathable air, and bone-chilling damp.

He thought about that metal man. Why had it seemed so familiar? The only metal men he'd ever see were Kankuro's puppets. They'd looked nothing like the bronze man he'd fought off. They'd been designed to look scary with protruding eyes and gnashing metal teeth. This metal man seemed to have been built to resemble a real person—at least from a distance.

From a distance.

That was the clue. He must have seen a metal man from a distance. Yeah, that's right—he had seen one from a distance.

"Hey, Shikamaru?"

"Yeah?"

"I know where I've seen a metal man like that one before."

"Where?"

"The gardener at old man Fujishima's house. I never saw his face. He was bent over trimming a shrub. I only saw him from behind from a distance. But he wore the same kind of clothes—the same color blue, I think. I thought he'd been wearing brown gloves and brown shoes, but maybe that was just metal. I assumed he was a real person—why would I think otherwise—so I didn't give it much thought at the time."

"Interesting."

"Is that all you've got to say? We've got to get out of this tunnel and go to old man Fujishima's place. That's where Hinata's got to be. We don't have time to waste looking for old man Shibuya and his mine even if he is involved."

"Don't worry, Naruto. I'm not looking for Mr. Shibuya's mine. I think I know where this tunnel will lead us."

"Hinata?"

"Yes. We'll find Hinata at the end of this tunnel. We'll also find Mr. Shibuya—and Lord Fujishima."

"Old man Fujishima?"

"That's right, Naruto. We're going north under the village. I think this tunnel leads to Lord Fujishima's house. That's where we'll find everyone—and I believe the answers to this mystery."


	19. Hinata awakens

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XIX. Hinata awakens

Hinata couldn't open her eyes.

She couldn't feel her eyelids to open them. She couldn't even feel herself trying to open her eyes. Ordinarily not opening her eyes wouldn't stop her Byakugan from functioning, but she couldn't seem to engage that extra sense either. It didn't seem to exist.

Her entire body felt numb. It barely made an impression on her consciousness. It was almost as if she had no body. She couldn't feel or sense where she was from anything she must have been touching. She had no idea why she couldn't move or completely awaken. All she could do was lie there—where ever there was—and rely on the one sense that seemed to still be functioning.

She listened.

She was either outside or there must be a window or door open where she lay—assuming she was lying down—because she could hear outside noises. She could hear birds trilling. She could hear frogs croaking. She could hear flies buzzing. She could hear leaves rustling in the trees. But she couldn't feel the breeze. She couldn't even tell if the sun or the moon were shining. Everything behind her eyelids was dark. She didn't feel either warm or cold.

It wasn't altogether an unpleasant feeling. It was just peculiar. She didn't remember ever feeling so disassociated before. But then she couldn't remember very much of anything just now. Nor did she seem to care very much that she couldn't. She felt she ought to be concerned, maybe even feel panicked, but she couldn't remember why. The present was the only awareness in her mind.

As she strained to listen, she began to hear sounds closer to her. She heard what sounded like a wooden door slide open or closed. She heard shuffling like someone's slippered feet moving against a wood or tatami mat surface. That could mean she was indoors. She heard what sounded like the swish of cloth moving against cloth which could be someone's clothes shifting as they walked. She heard the sound of something sliding against something else. She tried to picture what the something's might be, but having no frame of reference she couldn't imagine. It was a puzzle. Puzzles interested her. She could work up some mild curiosity for this puzzle.

Then she heard a voice. She didn't recognize the voice. It spoke softly, but quite near her as if the person was speaking beside or above her.

"Shouldn't we just kill her?" a man asked. "Wouldn't that solve all our problems?"

"Sessue!" a woman exclaimed. "We were told to take care of her. It is not our place to make such a terrible decision."

"I know, but wouldn't it solve everything?"

"Would it?"

"She knows too much—or she will. I just think it would be better for him if we end this now."

"Look at her. She's so defenseless. How could you do it? How could he make that decision? It's not right. I could never do it."

"If he ordered you to do it, wouldn't you?"

"I don't know. I just don't know. He wouldn't—would he?"

Before Hinata could hear more her inner vision seemed to darken and she passed out.

* * *

Hinata swam briefly into consciousness again.

She felt no different from the last time. She still didn't feel capable of opening her eyes or even moving. However, she remembered there had been a last time. That was more than she'd remembered before.

She also remembered what she'd heard the last time she'd partially awoken. It had seemed real, but she'd had so many strange dreams as she'd struggled to awaken, she couldn't be certain. As she tried to separate the real from the dreams, the dreams seemed as vivid as reality. Some of her dreams had seemed ridiculous, some scary, and some impossible. She still couldn't dredge up any real panic even when she remembered the scary things. She felt so heavy and listless. What made her feel this way?

Since she still couldn't do anything, but listen that's what she did. Once again she heard the outside sounds. Once again she heard the sounds of people moving. Once again she heard the same two people from before. She'd only heard them talking a short time, but she recognized their voices. However, this time another man joined in the talk. His voice seemed familiar, too, but she couldn't remember why.

She thought the three of them were close to her possibly even peering into her face watching her sleep. Their solemn voices seemed to float over her in hushed tones.

"Her eyelids are fluttering. She may be waking up."

"Maybe she's just dreaming. She's been sleeping like the dead."

"Don't say that!"

"It could take awhile for her to awaken, but I find the movement of her eyelids promising. Rapid eye movement like that means that her mind is functioning in some significant capacity."

"She's been asleep for hours."

"I know, but it's not unexpected. I always thought my first intruder would be a man. There may have been too much chloroform on the cloth for such a small girl."

"Could she die?"

"That's always a possibility. Chloroform is a very tricky substance. I hadn't experimented too much with it since my only test subjects would have been myself and the two of you." The voice held regret.

"Wouldn't that be a good thing? If she died, I mean."

He sighed. "Nothing good has come out of this last venture. Another death would not salvage it. The other one may have deserved his fate, but I'm certain this child has done nothing to die for. My conscience can bear no more."

"Master, let me take care of this for you."

"No, Sessue. The burden is mine. I will see it through to its just end."

Hinata wanted to hear more, but she couldn't stay with them. She passed out again.

* * *

The third time Hinata awoke she strained to pull her eyelids apart. This time she could feel the wetness of tears at the corner of her eyes and the crust of dead skin cells gluing her eyelids together. She had the irresistible urge to rub and wipe her eyes. She could feel her hand try to lift, but they were still too heavy.

She could feel other things, too.

She felt her body now. She was lying in a very soft, silky place. She felt incredibly comfortable. She could feel the breeze that she heard rustling in the trees dancing over her body stirring the hairs on her arms. She could sense light just beyond her closed eyelids. She tried to summon her Byakugan, but still couldn't manage it.

She could feel other sensations that told her her body existed, and was functioning. She could feel her chest rise and fall as she breathed. She could feel the beat of her heart in her ears. She could feel her dry lips, but couldn't open her mouth to lick them. She could even feel her toes touching something silken.

She should be feeling panic now, but instead she felt relief. She wasn't dead after all. Not if she could feel these things. She didn't know where she was, but she was alive.

She listened intently for the voices. What would they say this time? Would they once more discuss her death so casually?

She listened and listened, but heard no one move or breathe in the room with her.

Where were they now? Why had they deserted her? Were the others in danger, too?

The others! Naruto!

She hadn't thought about her team mates until now. She'd forgotten they even existed. Where were they? Were they looking for her or were they drugged and lying somewhere just as she was?

She had to get up. She had to get out of here. She had to find Naruto.

She struggled to move again and again. She exhausted herself moving her hands and feet a little, but still not able to open her eyes to see where she was or her mouth to call out. As she relaxed and rested from her exertion, she dozed off again.

* * *

The fourth time Hinata awoke, she knew that she had to move. She stretched out her arms and legs. She lifted her hands and rubbed the sand and tears from her eyes. She opened them to a large darkened room.

The outside noises she heard came from a partially opened window near her. The dark yellow light of the late afternoon sun streamed in a streak through the window never touching the futon she lay upon. She could now feel the warmth of the day and the breezes that cooled it.

She was lying on a very well padded futon with plumb pillows and silk sheets. Looking down at herself she noticed that her shoes had been removed as well as her jacket and ninja band from around her neck. None of her other clothing had been disturbed.

She still felt a bit of inertia and stiffness, but stretching and shifting about made the lethargy less pervasive. Whatever had kept her asleep was finally dissipating from her mind and body. She felt wide awake, and didn't think she'd fall asleep so easily again.

She tried to sit up, but couldn't carry the weight of her body yet in her arms. She relaxed back against the soft bedclothes and waited for someone to appear all the time stretching and slowly moving different parts of her body. While she waited she looked around the room.

It was large but sparsely furnished. There was an ornate chest opposite the oversize futon she lay upon. There was a teakwood table with a vase of flowers to the right of the futon against the wall. There was a smaller table on the left near her futon supporting a ceramic carafe and cup. There were bed curtains tied back behind her head and supported by a carved wooden frame at the corners of the futon.

The only other decorative element in the room was four water color pictures of flowers on the walls. That was the complete catalog of furniture and furnishings.

She didn't have long to become bored with the meager view, before the door slid open and an old woman came into the room. She wore a dark blue kimono. She glanced at Hinata, and started when she saw her eyes were open.

"You're awake!" she exclaimed coming towards the futon.

"May I, please, have some water?" she asked with a scratchy croak. She'd realized just how thirsty she was when she'd noticed the carafe so near and yet so far away. She couldn't reach it without turning and lifting her body to the left. That had seemed too great an exertion for her to make just yet. She'd tried to lick her lips, but her tongue could find no moisture to do so.

"Of course." The old woman poured water from the carafe into the cup on the table beside her futon. She knelt on the futon, slipped her arm under Hinata's neck to raise her head then held the cup to her lips.

Hinata gulped the water down greedily. Her mouth had felt completely parched. The water tasted so good—better than any water she'd ever tasted before.

"More?" the woman asked when Hinata had swallowed the entire cupful.

"Please."

She drank three cups altogether before she felt her thirst quenched.

The old woman laid her gently back against the pillows. She stood up, set down the cup, and moved towards the door.

"Wait! Please!" Hinata called. "I need to talk to you."

The woman turned, shook her head and backed away. "Not me. I can tell you nothing. I'll be back with someone you can talk to." She quickly fled the room.

Hinata suspected she must be retrieving one of the two men she'd heard in conversation from one of her brief awakenings. She thought she knew who would come back with the old woman. And she proved correct.

"Mr. Shibuya," she greeted him solemnly as he came through the door. His was the third voice she'd heard on her second awakening. She would rather have seen him than the unknown _Sessue_ who seemed to want her dead.

He smiled and sat down beside the futon. "How are you, young lady? You've been asleep for quite sometime."

"How long?"

"8 hours. Would you like to sit up?"

She nodded. He gently pushed her forward. He placed plumb pillows behind her to prop her up. He then pushed her gently back to rest against them. He had to do a little adjusting so her head was fully supported and she was propped comfortably. She could tell he wasn't used to helping invalids, because it took him awhile to get the pillows just right.

Finally, he sat back satisfied with his work. "How is that?"

She shifted a little to settle herself to find just the right spot for maximum comfort. "Very good. Thank you." She looked him directly in the eyes. "Tell me, Mr. Shibuya—are you going to kill me?" she asked coming immediately to the point that was her greatest concern.

He pursed his lips. "You heard us discussing the possibility? You were awake at the time?"

"I've heard several discussions regarding my imminent death," she admitted. She was surprised she could discuss it so calmly.

"I'm sorry you had to hear our silly little discussions," he said regretfully.

"I didn't find the subject silly. I found it most disturbing. Are you going to kill me?" she persisted. The subject of her death had given her a courage she'd never had before. She forgot to be shy and reserved in the face of her possible death. She needed information. She had no time to be timid.

He patted her hand. "If I were going to kill you, would I leave you unattended for most of the day? Would I even allow you to awaken? Would I adjust your pillows so comfortably? Would I give you the second best bedroom in my house?"

"I don't know. I'm surprised to be here conscious or unconscious. I meant no harm. I only wished to question you."

"Yes, well, I'm greatly surprised, too," he said pleasantly.

"Where is this second best bedroom? What house are you referring to?" Hinata continued. "I was under the impression that you lived in a cabin outside the village. This isn't your cabin. This room is larger than your entire cabin. Where are we?" She had so many questions. Ordinarily she would have been reticent about asking such intrusive questions, but she needed to know what was happening. She needed to know what she had to do from here. She wasn't sure she believed that he wouldn't kill her once he'd talked to her. Maybe he had questions he needed answered first. She'd keep him talking as long as possible while she recovered her strength.

"The cabin you entered is one of my houses. You are in my other house now."

"How did I get here?"

"Ryoma brought you here."

"Is he the one who attacked me?"

"Yes, that's right. He is the guardian of my mine."

"How did he attack me? I don't remember very much about it." Hinata tried to remember that moment. It had happened so suddenly and seemed so long ago.

"It was a drug called chloroform. I learned about its properties as a boy when I was in school. I thought it would be a painless solution to thwarting a break-in. Ryoma placed a cloth saturated with chloroform over your nose and mouth. You breathe it in and became unconscious. It's very fast acting."

"I remember a metal band pinning my arms to my side. Was that Ryoma? What is he? There were no humans in that tunnel. I can tell. I would have been prepared for a human attack."

He looked at her in surprise. "That's right. He's not human. He is a creature made of metal."

"How do you command him? He can't be a puppet."

"I don't really know. I was quite inventive in my youth and enjoyed tinkering with machines. I thought it would be interesting to create a man made of metal. Once I created his form, I tried various motors to make him run, but nothing worked effectively. One day when I was thinking aloud, I told him what I wanted him to do—quite forcefully as I remember—and he did it. It was amazing. Really. Of course, there are limitations, but if the instructions are simple they can be followed. I only need to reinforce the guard command periodically and he will do as I ask when necessary. I have several other metal creatures who are set to simple tasks around my estate and mine. They've helped me enormously over the years. I usually set them to tasks that Sessue and Yuzu Hayama, my human servants haven't the time to perform."

"I see." She had seen several small areas of chakra in that mine before she'd entered and assumed they were animals. This man could have a chakra similar to that of a ninja and the ability to place it in inanimate objects. He'd apparently discovered this ability by accident and had no idea what he was doing or how he was doing it since he'd never studied the ninja arts. If he had been born into a hidden village he would have been trained as a ninja and used his abilities for ninjutsu. His chakra had undoubtedly increased as he developed and used it in his metal creatures. That had to be the explanation for the ability of his metal creatures to function without any apparent mechanism. "You've given them names," she observed.

"I think of them as my children. Ryoma was my first. I made him for the purpose of defending that entrance to my mine. Yet he's never had to defend it in all the 40 years I've set him in place at the bottom of the stairs leading down to my mine."

"I was the first to discover your mine?"

"Yes. I'm pleased to find that my safety measures worked so well since they were essentially untested until now. You are the very first one to ever discover the secret of my mine. How did you do that? Although I took precautions, I honestly thought the entrance was concealed quite cleverly."

She decided to withhold information from this man. As far as she was concerned he was the enemy until proven otherwise. She was too weak to fight as yet, so essentially she was still at his mercy. What he didn't know could be an advantage for her. And he didn't need to know anything specific about her or her companions. "The ninja arts are secret from non-practitioners. I'm not authorized to reveal our secrets to outsiders. Suffice it to say, we have abilities that aren't available to the general public."

"So your friends have similar powers?"

"My team mates do have similar abilities, yes." It was sort of the truth. She was certain they'd find the opening to the mine even without her Byakugan. They had to figure out that she'd disappeared from or near that cabin since it was the last place she'd visited. Of any of them, Shikamaru would surely figure it out and come to find her.

"That's what I was afraid of—so many to know my own secrets. That is most unfortunate, but I think you can be discreet. You obviously know how to keep secrets."

"What do you intend to do with me?"

He gave her a reassuring smile. "I'll keep you well until your friends arrive for you. Whatever you need is yours for the asking. My intentions are strictly above board."

"It's not that simple, Mr. Shibuya." She tried to sound stern, but he was a very likeable old man. She was beginning to think he might be sincere. "A man is dead."

"I know, but we don't need to discuss that until your friends arrive. I'd hate to repeat myself. It's so boring when old men tell the same stories time after time, don't you think?"

"So you do know something about our mystery?"

"Unfortunately, I know everything about your mystery. We will discuss it all later, I assure you."

Hinata eyed him thoughtfully. Apparently, he wouldn't answer her questions, and she had no leverage to coerce him until she regained her strength. She'd just have to question around the issue, and hope to learn something inadvertently. The more information she could acquire the better. "Where exactly is this house?"

"We're outside the village to the north. One of your friends stopped here to ask questions this morning. Naturally, my staff wasn't forthcoming with their knowledge. We'd hoped that you'd be unable to discover anything. I knew nothing about ninja abilities or I might have done things differently. Oh well, that's water under the bridge. Your friend would have discovered this place to be Lord Fujishima's house."

She frowned. "But you said it was your house."

He shrugged. "Another of my little secrets, I hope you will keep to yourself. Sometimes I am Nohara Shibuya and sometimes I am Takeshi Fujishima. I have played both of those two roles for over 40 years."

"How did that come about?" She could hardly believe how forthcoming he was. He seemed quite ready and willing to answer most of her questions. Should she be concerned that he was so open? Did he not care what she knew because he planned to kill her after all? She wished she had a clue about his intentions, but all she could do was keep him talking.

"My family wouldn't allow me to mix with the villagers as a Fujishima so I invented another persona. Once I inherited the Fujishima title and property ten years ago after my brother died, I no longer stayed long at the cabin. I only used it to access the village for information and gossip. I'd always disagreed with my family about shunning the villagers. Pride can be a very lonely bitter thing. From birth until their death neither my parents nor my brother set foot in the village."

"This is your family home? The Fujishima family has always lived here?"

"For at least two hundred years. Probably longer. We were a very prominent family before the wars about a hundred years ago. We lost our position, most of our land, and a great deal of our fortune. My family has never been able to forget that they were once the lords of all they surveyed."

Hinata had an interesting thought she might as well pursue since he said he wouldn't tell her anything important about their mystery until the others arrived. "Did you have an ancestor named Uryu?"

He looked at her in surprise. "My great uncle was named Uryu. How did you know that?"

"I met someone who told me a story about a Uryu Fujishima. He was a warrior during the wars you spoke of a hundred years ago."

"That's true. He was my grandfather's older brother. He was a great warrior—a hero. Unfortunately, he lost his legs in the war."

"Did he die in the war?"

"No—not immediately—although the war was the ultimate cause of his death. After he was severely wounded, he was healed enough to survive. I believe the healing was quite brutal—cutting off his legs and cauterizing the wounds, but he never fully recovered from the loss of his legs. From what I was told, he lost interest in life and simply wasted away. He was only 21 when he died. The title and estate went to my grandfather, but there wasn't much left. We had to sell off the land and many other things to support the war. What did you hear of Uryu Fujishima?"

"I was told he was wounded and recovered at a small shrine of Amaterasu Ōmikami. He and the young priestess there fell in love. He told her he would return after the war, but he never did. She died of a broken heart. She was only 19."

"How strange! That could be my great uncle. I have never heard that story, but that would explain why he had no will to live after he was wounded. He had a forbidden love, no way to meet her again, no life to offer her, and no reason to live without her. Very tragic."

"I thought so when I heard the story."

"I wish I had known that story before. My family has always had mixed feelings about my great uncle. They revered him as a hero, but felt he should have died in the war rather than come home and die so ignominiously. A tragic love story would have garnered him more sympathy."

"Families are often the most unforgiving and severe of judges," Hinata agreed. She could readily sympathize considering the uneasy relationship she had with her own judgmental father.

"So true. I was not understood by my family either. But at least they let me alone to do what I wished. I've actually had a very interesting life doing exactly as I wished."

"Until now."

"Oh, I don't know about that. It's still interesting. It just may not turn out the way I'd originally imagined. That depends on your and your friends."

"Team mates," she corrected. She felt they were her friends too, but this man had to be made to appreciate that they were here in a more official capacity.

"As you wish, but I have excellent observational skills myself. I think that blonde-haired excitable team mate of yours is something more than a team mate."

"Mr. Shib—Lord Fujishima! That is not your concern," she admonished with her face turning red.

He held up his hands. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to embarrass you. I was merely making conversation while we wait. Your team mates should be along any time now. I would think they'd have missed you some time ago." He fell silent for a few moments then raised his head and turned towards the door. "In fact, I think I hear the dulcet tones of that blonde team mate of yours now. He has a very distinctive voice." He stood up and moved away from the futon to stand against the wall near the door and out of the way.

Hinata listened. She listened very hard.

She heard the pounding of feet first.

Then her heart swelled as she heard Naruto yelling, "Hinata! Hinata! We're coming!" Hopefully this wouldn't turn out to be a mission requiring stealth.


	20. Denouement

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XX. Denouement

The end of the tunnel worked as effectively and simply as the beginning.

When Naruto saw the stairs he jumped ahead of everyone despite Choji's protests and Shikamaru's orders to the contrary. He was ready to fight whoever or whatever got in his way to Hinata's side. Nothing could stop him.

He sprang through the opening in the floor. He looked around the small dark room. He saw a door and headed for it only to be blocked by old man Hayama. Even in the darkened room he recognized Lord Fujishima's chief servant. Shikamaru was right. They were at the Fujishima place. He grabbed the old man by the shirt and pulled him up to his toes. "Where is she, old man?" he demanded harshly.

"How dare you!?" The old man swatted at Naruto's hand ineffectually trying to free himself. "I demand you let go of me!"

"I don't care what you demand. I'll strangle you if you don't tell me where she is." And to prove it, he pulled tighter on the neck of the man's shirt choking him.

"Ah—ah—" the old man gasped.

"Naruto! Release him! Let him speak," Shikamaru ordered as he climbed out of the hole not far behind Naruto. He'd brushed past Choji to stay close to his volatile team mate. No telling what he might do in his excitable state—not that Shikamaru had any real control over him at the moment. But he needed answers not wounded or dead bodies. Hinata better be alright. He had to get those answers before Naruto lost complete control.

"I will if he tells me something I want to hear." Naruto loosened his grip slightly. "Where is she, old man?"

"I don't know—" he began, but Naruto tightened his grip again and shook him roughly. His head bobbled like a rag doll.

"That's not what I want to hear. Where is she?"

"L-left," he gasped. "D-down hall. Right. Down next hall. T-third door. Left." He didn't even try to pretend not to understand what Naruto was asking about a second time. He was ready to pass out from lack of air and dizziness.

Naruto flung him aside without another word, and ran out the door.

"Naruto, be careful. Don't do anything rash. We'll be right behind you," Shikamaru called, but let his voice trail off. He knew his words were useless, but they had to be said. It was just possible that somewhere in Naruto's head the words would register when they were needed. Otherwise, they were in for a long night waiting for Naruto's victims to recover so they could ask some questions.

Both of the hallways were long. When he turned down the second one he yelled, "Hinata! Hinata! We're coming!" He gave no thought to the fact that he might be warning the enemy. Let them be warned. He didn't care. He'd mow down anyone in his way—metal or human.

Naruto took no special precautions when he flung open the third door on the left down the second hallway rocking it on its hinges. He burst through the opening and landed in a fighting stance.

The room was virtually empty except for a few chests and/or tables and the large futon at the end of the room. All really he noticed was Hinata lying propped against numerous pillows, her face flushed and a welcoming smile on her lips.

He ran towards her, throwing himself to his knees beside her. His hands were almost trembling as he pulled her roughly into his arms. He buried his face in her silky black, hair and pressed her against him. "Hinata. Hinata. I was so worried. If anything had happened to you—"

He crushed her tightly against him, but she didn't mind. She heard his relieved murmurs in her ear as she lifted her arms hugging him back to the best of her ability considering her still weakened condition. "Naruto. Are you alright? Where are the others?"

He held her for a long moment without speaking. Then he slowly released her and drew back. He lightly brushed the mussed tresses of her hair out of the way then put his hands on either side of her face and stared deeply into her eyes. "Am _I_ alright? I wasn't the one kidnapped. Hinata, are _you _alright? What did he do to you?"

She shook her head within the gentle cradle of his hands. "I was drugged. I don't remember much about it. I was at the bottom of the stairs in Mr. Shibuya's mine and then I woke up here."

"You're not hurt, are you? Tell me."

"No. I don't think so. The drug—it's still in my system, but I'm getting stronger all the time"

Naruto abruptly released her and punched his right hand into the palm of his left. "Who did this? Where is he? I'll kill him!"

She put her hands over his. "No, Naruto. It was an accident. He didn't mean to harm me. I was trespassing in his mine. That's all."

"Who—Shibuya? Where is he?" He put his hand down on the futon to lift himself up.

Lord Fujishima cleared his throat. "Right here, young man."

Naruto sprang to his feet, leapt over the futon and had Lord Fujishima pinned against the wall with his forearm against his neck just as Shikamaru, Temari, Choji and Daiki rushed into the room.

"Naruto!" Hinata cried.

"Hold it, Naruto. We need him to answer some questions," Shikamaru ordered. He motioned for Choji to pull Naruto away. "He can't do that if you crush his larynx."

Naruto resisted Choji's grip for a moment, then shook him off, and pulled his arm away from Lord Fujishima's neck.

The old man put a hand to his throat. "I know what you're thinking, young man. But I had no intention of harming this young lady. My guardian can not determine intent. He was set to drug anyone entering the mine and bring them here. He performed his duties faithfully. I assure you, the young lady was hardly bruised. I believe you've already had your revenge on my guardian. I no longer sense his presence."

Naruto glared angrily at the old man. "That metal man? Yeah, I took care of him. So he's the one who attacked Hinata? I wish I'd smashed him up a little more. Like this!" He rammed his hand into the wall beside Lord Fujishima's head.

"Naruto!" A number of voices yelled and shrieked.

Choji grabbed and jerked him away from Lord Fujishma and the wall. Naruto allowed himself to be pulled away barely noticing the embedded wood shards and bleeding cuts decorating his knuckles from the thick, high quality wood he'd splintered.

"That's for Hinata," he said menacingly.

Lord Fujishima stood stock still, blinked once and swallowed audibly. He'd felt the rush of wind and heat from that blow so close to his head. As he'd heard the crunch of wood breaking, he'd been sickeningly aware of just how fragile his head would have been under that blow. He was at a loss for words.

"Speaking of Hinata—" Shikamaru interrupted the dramatic by play. It was time to call Naruto to heel. "How are you, Hinata?"

She looked worriedly at Naruto as she answered him. "I'm fine, _really_. It's taking a while for the drug to leave my system, _that's all_. I've been in an out of consciousness for 8 hours apparently. I still feel rather weak, but I'm no longer sleepy. Lord Fujishima and his staff have taken _good_ care of me," she said earnestly willing Naruto to listen. He still looked so angry and dangerous, she was afraid he'd hurt himself. She didn't want him punching anymore walls. She was grateful that Choji had such a firm grip on his arm.

"Lord Fujishima? I thought you were old man Shibuya," Naruto demanded frowning darkly at the old man. "Isn't Fujishima an invalid? That's what old man Hayama claimed."

"You're both Nohara Shibuya and Lord Fujishima, aren't you?" Shikamaru asked shrewdly.

The old man looked at Shikamaru in surprise. "That's right. I claim both identities. When did you figure that out, young man?"

He shrugged. "Once we discovered the tunnel, I knew there was a relationship between Shibuya and Fujishima, but I wasn't completely sure what it was until Hinata referred to you and your staff."

"What's going on here? Who can I fight?" Naruto demanded eagerly slapping his fist into his palm. He was already healing so the pain was slight.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but I don't think your brute force will be required this time," Shikamaru walked across the room and sat down on the futon. "Why don't we all get comfortable so Lord Fujishima can explain things to us?"

"How do we know he won't try to get away?" Naruto asked belligerently, and glared at the old man.

"I think Lord Fujishima must be aware by now that ninja are not easily duped or defeated. If he tries to run, you have my permission to bring him back in any manner you like. Now sit down and listen to what he has to say."

Temari, Daiki and Choji sat down on the bottom of the futon along side Shikamaru. It was large enough to accommodate a few more people, but Naruto stalked past them to Hinata's side, grumbling all the while. "I don't like a mission that doesn't end in a fight. What's the point?"

Shikamaru sighed. "Just because we have the might doesn't mean we have to use it. However, I promise you, Naruto, if force is necessary, I'll call on you first. Okay?"

"Yeah, I'll hold you to that," Naruto growled and settled down beside Hinata. His hands were still clenched and ready for battle. Once again Hinata put her hands over his fists and gently coaxed them open. She examined the hand that had punched a hole in the wall, but found little evidence of the abuse. The splinters had squeezed out of his flesh and the cuts were barely visible. He held her hands to stop her fussing over him as he listened to the old man. She needed his care not the other way around.

Lord Fujishima walked over to the window and leaned against the wall beside it. With everyone's eyes upon him, he still stood at ease, his arms hung loosely at his sides. He no longer felt in imminent danger from the volatile blonde ninja. Already his bristling anger was less noticeable under the calming influence of the strangely silver eyed young lady who'd so mysteriously discovered his mine. He was thankful that she'd recovered so well from his safeguards. He would have feared for his life had things been otherwise. "First, I'd like you to know that I never meant for any of this to happen. I admit that I made a few mistakes, but I never expected such significant attention from my foolish actions."

"We'll be the judge of that once we've heard your story," Shikamaru told him objectively.

"Yes, of course." He took a deep breath. "Ten years ago, my elder brother died and I inherited the title of Lord Fujishima," he began.

"We don't need to hear your life story, old man," Naruto interrupted. Despite Hinata's calming presence, he still wanted to hurt someone for all the mind numbing anxiety he'd felt that day. He'd never felt such terror even as a boy when he'd been faced with protecting Sakura and Sasuke against Gaara/Shukaku during Orochimaru and the Sand Village's attack against Konoha. He didn't know if he could truly calm down unless he severely pounded someone or something. He was still too revved up to listen dispassionately to what this villain—until proven innocent—had to say.

Lord Fujishima smiled sadly. "Not my entire story. That would be terribly uninteresting. I've really led a very ordinary life. I was generally left alone to putter with my experiments and my mine. My family took no interest whatsoever in anything I did. I actually accumulated quite a cache of gold and precious jewels with the help of my metal men in the thirty years I was left to my own devices. Even when my parents died one after the other and there was only my brother and myself, our relationship remained as distant as ever. I gave no thought to the future. I was content—until my brother died. That's when everything changed. I was the last Fujishima in the direct line of succession. I had no sons, no daughters, no nieces, no nephews. When I died the Fujishima property would go to a distant branch of the family. I began to think of the legacy I wanted to leave behind."

"I thought you said this wasn't your life story, old man," Naruto growled.

"Naruto!" Hinata admonished softly.

"Shut up, Naruto. Let the guy tell us his story," Choji growled back.

Lord Fujishima spread out his hands apologetically. "I'm sorry this is such a nuisance for you. I never thought the villagers would send for outsiders. That was one of my foolish mistakes—underestimating them. Like my family before me, I'm afraid I became a little too arrogant regarding the needs and concerns of others."

"No kidding."

"Naruto quit interrupting. I want to hear this," Shikamaru requested. "Please continue your story in your own way."

He nodded his head. "When I inherited what little there was left of the Fujishima land, fortune and possessions, I decided to research the family. Now that it was all mine I wanted to know what my heritage was all about. I read the old histories, diaries and papers of countless generations stored in the library. I'd never realized how much our family had lost in the last great war. I'd only thought it was a loss of position and land, but there had been many cherished heirlooms that had been sold to fund our family's share of the war. Now that I had plenty of money and was accountable to no one I wanted to set some things right. I'd never cared about any of this before, but now I had a dream. I dreamt of regaining some of our lost heritage."

He folded his arms, and turned to look out the window. "I decided regaining the land would be a doubtful proposition. We'd owned it all—the entire village and their gold mine had been in the possession of the Fujishma family at one time. However, I didn't think the villagers would be willing to sell back everything that had once belonged to us. So, what I could regain were the heirlooms our family had been forced to sell a hundred years ago. I had an old inventory with excellent descriptions of the items and who they were sold to. Ten years ago, with the help of the Hayama's son I set out to regain our long lost heirlooms."

"By stealing them." Naruto interjected sarcastically.

He shook his head. "Not at all, young man. I paid the asking price for all the heirlooms I regained until this last one."

"My family's fan?" Temari asked eagerly.

"My family's fan first," he corrected gently. "Over the years Matsuri Hayama found the objects I wanted and purchased them as my agent. For the most part, the owners parted with the heirlooms if the price were right. Only once or twice was I unable to immediately obtain an item. Generally, Matsuri would then wait for the item to pass into other hands or the family fortune to suffer reversals before making another offer. I waited six years for one particular item to finally become available. I was willing to wait as long as it took. I had no intention of resorting to theft. I wanted the Fujishima heirlooms to be restored legitimately. I did not blame the purchasers of the items for possessing them. On the contrary, at the time the money was more important than the heirlooms. I wanted no disgrace to the Fujishima name."

"So what happened this time?"

"Matsuri found the fan in Sunagakure. It was in the village museum. He made his offer to the curator. He was told the fan was an heirloom of the Kazekage's family, and they would not sell. I was satisfied to wait, but my wait wasn't very long. A week after Matsuri reported to me, a man came to my house to sell me the fan. This man knew of my offer and knew where he should come with the fan so he had either overheard the offer or been told of it. Of course, I suspected that he'd acquired the fan illegally, but I chose to ignore that thought. It was very wrong of me. I regret my momentary weakness."

"Yeah, I bet—not until you'd been found out."

"I would have regretted it no matter what. I intended to send money to the village for the fan—anonymously, of course. I really didn't want to give it up now that it had come into my possession. It is really a beautiful and unique piece." He sighed, "However, I didn't retain it long. I agreed to the man's price perhaps too quickly. I could see the calculation and greed settle over his features even as we came to terms. He decided that the price agreed upon wasn't enough. He chose to rob me and keep the fan to sell elsewhere. He was very arrogant and demanding. I refused to give him what he wanted. He attacked me."

"Hidekatsu was a ninja. How did you overpower him?" Temari asked curiously.

He shrugged. "I was fortunate to have my walking stick with me at the time. I usually carry it as Nohara Shibuya. It's not just an aid in walking—it's a weapon, too. I had it with me because I'd recently returned through the tunnel, and I hadn't yet sought my bedroom to change. I pushed it into his chest and pressed the release for the blade hidden in the top knob. I didn't realize that it was over his heart at the time. I only meant to protect myself—to stop him. I was being choked and had no time to take notice of details. The blade is very thin and sharp. It ejected forcefully into his chest and heart. The man died instantly falling on top of me. I doubted he suffered more than a moment. Sessue rescued me and cleaned up the mess."

"If the death was an accident, how did he end up mutilated and lying at the opposite end of the village—discovered by you?" Shikamaru asked dryly.

Lord Fujishima rubbed his nose. "Yes, well, that was another of my foolish mistakes. I should have simply buried him on the grounds. That would certainly have solved all my problems, but you see—I felt guilty. I'd never physically harmed another person in my life. I had a great dread that his ghost would haunt me if I didn't dispose of him properly. I thought if he were found by the villagers they'd give him a proper burial that would satisfy his spirit."

"You can't be serious?" Naruto asked in disbelief.

"We all suffer our little superstitions," he said defensively. "Perhaps I am more superstitious than most. I didn't want another burden on this family's honorable name. I thought a proper burial was necessary despite the dishonorable behavior of the man."

"Why did you disguise his appearance?" Shikamaru asked.

"What did you use?" Choji asked immediately following.

"It was a chemical I use to separate ore from rock. It's quite acidic to rock and organic material such as human flesh. I thought if he were recognized it would precipitate an investigation that would somehow lead the authorities to me."

"Which it did anyway," Naruto said unnecessarily.

His shoulders slumped. "I know. I know. I never expected that to happen. I thought the villagers would be so protective of their gold mine that they wouldn't allow strangers prying about. It never occurred to me that they thought the death pertained to their mine and wanted it solved right away. I never meant any harm. You must believe that no matter what happened I would never have covered up my crime with more death. I would have accepted the results of my actions."

"Yet you didn't rush to confess either, did you?" Temari asked dryly.

"Well, no. If you didn't happen to discover me, I wasn't about to tell you about it. There was no point in unnecessary confession. However, I had no idea that ninja were so intelligent or resourceful. I'm sorry to have wasted your time in this village so unconscionably."

"Yeah, you could have saved us a lot of unnecessary annoyance and aggravation," Naruto suggested grumpily. "I could have happily lived my entire life without ever setting foot in that village."

"I don't know about that. The food was pretty good, the hot springs were great—and we met some interesting people," Choji contradicted him thoughtfully.

"Yeah, name one," Naruto demanded.

"No matter how annoying they were, you have to admit they weren't dull," Choji argued. "I think you've found a real friend in Constable Hayama," he teased.

"Very funny, Choji. This is the worst mission I've ever been on. You won't ever change my mind about that. Old man Fujishima should be punished just for wasting our time in this awful village. It can't be an acceptable practice for Konoha to have its resources wasted," he said darkly. "How about it, Shikamaru?"

"That does bear some consideration. However, this one isn't entirely my call. Temari, what is your desire in this matter? It was a Sand Village ninja who died," Shikamaru asked her.

"What do you say, Daiki?" she asked in turn.

He ducked his head and shrugged. "I don't care," he mumbled.

"Apparently, we're not concerned about the death of Hidekatsu. He stole the fan, accosted this man, and intended to rob him. I say his fate was just punishment for his actions. My concern is the fan. It's been in my family one hundred years. We consider it _our_ family's heirloom. We have no intention of selling it. I want it back."

Lord Fujishima bowed his head. "I agree. I did not acquire it legitimately therefore it does not belong to me. The fan is still yours. Sessue!" he called.

The door which had been partially closed slid completely open and old man Hayama stood there. He glared at Naruto then bowed to his master. "Yes, my lord."

"Bring the oni akomeogi here. It belongs to this young lady."

"Yes, my lord." He bowed again and left the room.

"Oni akomeogi?" Temari asked. "Demon fan?"

"So the legend goes. The oni akomeogi once belonged to an onmyōji. It was said to be used in the banishment of demons and evil spirits. That is all I know of the story. I don't know if it is true or how the fan was used, but it was supposed to have mystical properties. Its value is far more than the sum of its gold, ivory and precious stones. I have noticed that you are a lady of fans. Perhaps you are the only one who could fully appreciate this special fan."

Sessue returned and handed a small, narrow box to Lord Fujishima who waved him over to Temari. She held out her hand and accepted an old red silk and gold embroidered box. She opened the tiny gold catch to find the fan inside.

"Please keep the box. It was the fan's original container. I don't know why it wasn't sold with the fan. My ancestors weren't entirely complete in their record keeping."

Temari examined the fan to be certain it wasn't an imitation. It appeared authentic to her. She closed and tucked the box into the bodice of her shirt. "I have no more interest in this affair. Daiki and I are satisfied with the disposition of Hidekatsu. We have no wish to advertise his dishonorable acts. Our mission is completed with the recovery of my fan."

Shikamaru sighed. "Our mission is not so easily ended. Lord Fujishima, I believe that you killed Hidekatsu in self-defense, but I am not your judge and jury. We need to offer the village a satisfactory conclusion to this mystery complete with a culprit. It is there determination what justice should be meted out. I don't wish to reveal your secrets, Lord Fujishima, but the villagers are the ones who paid for our services."

"I realize that, young man. You understand that I have no wish for the villagers to discover that I have another mine or another identity? Thinking they have the upper hand over the Fujishima family has actually left us in peace. I don't wish to disturb that balance now. What can I offer you to keep my secret?"

"Bribery, Lord Fujishima? I'm disappointed."

"Not bribery exactly, but can't we come to some arrangement that will allow me to keep my secrets and live in peace with the villagers even now?"

Shikamaru steepled his hands in his trademark thinking mode, and looked down at the floor. Everyone—even Naruto—quietly awaited his decision on this request.


	21. Tying up loose ends

Elementary, my dear Naruto

XXI. Tying up loose ends

Naruto held his tongue while Shikamaru did his thing. He could have thrown more sarcastic remarks at old man Fujishima, but what good would that do? He wasn't the real villain of this affair. Hidekatsu was that, and he'd been dead a week. There was no one else he could in all conscience punish. If Hinata had been seriously hurt—well, that would have been an entirely different situation—but as it was, she'd only been drugged, and well taken care of in that state. He couldn't have asked for a better outcome.

Yet he was still angry.

He knew he was being unreasonable, but he'd never cared about someone in this way before. He didn't know how to deal with the anxiety and fear. This was all so new to him. Even Sakura had never brought out so many protective feelings in him. Yet he knew he had to come to terms with the idea of Hinata in danger. She was a Kunoichi. It would happen again. And he wouldn't always be there. He had to learn to deal with it—or go crazy whenever she was out of his sight.

He felt Hinata's worried eyes on him. He knew he wasn't hiding his anger very well. He wondered if she could see his anger with her Byakugan. She could see so many things that he couldn't with her blood limit. It was odd to think that she could actually look through him. He wondered if she ever had. He wondered how much she could see inside him. Would she Kyuubi if she looked into him? Or would she just see his chakra channels and Kyuubi's chakra when he called it up? He'd have to ask her sometime.

For now, he squeezed her hand and rubbed his thumb over her palm. He liked the feel of her soft skin under his fingers. Even for a kunoichi she had soft hands with only traces of calluses. And her hands were small. He could fit both of hers within one of his—and to think that at one time she was taller than he was. He hoped his little play with her hands—which was actually calming—reassured her that he wouldn't do anything stupid. Although maybe old man Fujishima's wall needed another opening. That action had given him a certain amount of satisfaction and relief from all his negative feelings, but he'd like to aim at someone he really disliked—Constable Hayama for example. In his place Sessue Hayama might do, if he opened his mouth to say something stupid again. He still couldn't believe the guy had actually tried to lie to him when he'd asked where Hinata was.

Why was Shikamaru taking so long to think? What did it all matter? Since there was no one to pound, he didn't really care what was decided. He was just thankful that they could leave this village real soon—the sooner the better as far as he was concerned. So instead of prolonging things by opening his mouth to verbally vent and possibly disturb Shikamaru in thought, he remained quiet like the others, although not as still while he waited for the great brain to finish thinking.

Finally Shikamaru lowered his hands. He'd completed his thought processes. He raised his head and looked at Lord Fujishima. "Many people would find your openness about this business disingenuous, but knowing the background of the ninja who was killed, I have no doubt that your version of events was essentially correct."

"Thank you," Lord Fujishima said, and inclined his head gratefully.

"Therefore," he continued as if he'd never been interrupted. "I'm inclined to help you as far as duty allows. Tell me, Lord Fujishima—are you willing to give up Nohara Shibuya?"

"I—yes. I can do that."

"Then we'll bring Nohara Shibuya into the village and explain that the dead man tried to rob you. You defended yourself and he was killed. You were afraid of being incarcerated and someone stealing your mine so you disguised him, left him outside the village, and pretended to find him. If they decide you need to be brought to justice, we'll tell the villagers that we're taking you back to Konoha for trial. That would necessitate the end of Nohara Shibuya and should take care of this mystery to the villager's satisfaction. If you need to give up Shibuya, I suggest you completely block the southern entrance to your tunnel so no one can find it even accidentally. I'd hate to have to come back here because someone has gone missing searching for your mine."

He bowed to Shikamaru. "Yes, I agree to everything. Your solution to this problem is most merciful. Thank you, young man. As well as being intelligent and resourceful, ninja's are just and noble as well."

"Flattery, Lord Fujishima? Don't bother. If you like Konoha justice, you might see your way to sending some reimbursement to the Sand Village. You wasted the time of two valuable ninja trying to track down their stolen artifact. If not for you the thought of theft might never have entered that ninja's head. Although you can't be held responsible for his actions, if you had returned the stolen fan, they would not have come here looking for it, and we might not have discovered the truth about this mystery. Think about that the next time you allow greed and expediency to dictate your actions," Shikamaru lectured. He rather enjoyed his role as the all knowing and all wise arbiter of justice. It wasn't too often he was able to lecture his elders.

"It shall be done." He bowed again.

Shikamaru stood up. "It's starting to get dark. I suppose we ought to get back. There's a dinner awaiting us back at the village.

"Aw, do we have to? Hinata's not up to it yet," Naruto asked not budging from his comfortable seat. However, he did remember to drop Hinata's hands before someone caught him holding them.

"I have plenty of room and bedding here. Why don't you stay the night? Wouldn't we all be better served if we rested before facing the villagers tomorrow?" Lord Fujishima suggested.

"Now that I've made my decision, I see no conflict to us enjoying your hospitality. What do you all say?" He addressed the others.

Everyone was in complete agreement. No one was interested in the villager's dinner. The food might be fine, but endless numerous questions and curious stares would not be.

Lord Fujishima gave orders to Sessue to prepare some rooms. It was determined that Temari would share Hinata's room. The futon was big enough to sleep four. Naruto wished he could stay at Hinata's side to watch over her, but he had no right to ask. Their relationship hadn't even gotten started yet. No one would consider it proper since she wasn't exactly ill, and he wasn't even her official boyfriend yet. Reluctantly, he stood up.

"I'll have Sessue bring in a table. You can dine here so the young lady won't be left alone. Now that the drug is wearing off, she can hardly be tired yet," Lord Fujishima suggested genially.

"Yeah, let's do that," Naruto agreed readily.

"You'll be joining us, won't you, Lord Fujishima? I'd like to hear about your metal men," Shikamaru suggested.

"Certainly. I'd be happy to describe them to you at dinner."

The meal they shared with Lord Fujishima was much better than the meals they'd had at the inn while under village scrutiny. There was also a wider variety of dishes. Shikamaru thought the lord of the manor must either be expressing his gratitude with his opulent hospitality or attempting to sweeten them up so they wouldn't change their mind. He hoped his reading of the situation had been accurate. If the Fifth disagreed with his decision she could always send in more ninja, but he didn't think that likely. Lord Fujishima might have allowed greed and a lack of judgment to guide him, but he wasn't dangerous. And now that they'd impressed him with the mystique of ninjas, he wouldn't try anything overt again.

During dinner, Naruto was able to watch Hinata to his heart's content without anyone caring. She stayed in bed, and he elected himself as her server. She didn't appear to need any help eating and the food seemed to revive her strength even more. But he kept watch, willingly fetching whatever she required.

Lord Fujishima seemed delighted with the company. He had so few occasions to converse with others. Shikamaru and Temari were most interested in his metal men. They listened to a complete explanation and insisted on a demonstration. However, no one present except Lord Fujishima could command them. Shikamaru had been hoping to have found a new tool for Konoha ninja, however the power wasn't in the metal men, but in Lord Fujishima himself. Unfortunately, he was too old to recruit.

Choji ate as much as he wanted without anyone complaining or rushing him. Too bad there were no barbeque dishes. He would have rated the mission _excellent_ if they'd offered barbeque any where.

Daiki was subdued. He ate some of whatever Choji heaped on his plate, and he listened attentively to the various conversations. Temari saw to it that the conversation never strayed towards a reminder of their mission. She was sensitive to his feelings. Even if he and Hidekatsu hadn't been close, they were still family. Family could do many unforgivable things before you actually stopped forgiving them. Hidekatsu had crossed that line, but it would still be difficult to forget. Daiki needed much more time for that.

After dinner, Lord Fujishima showed them some of his more remarkable heirlooms. Many were encrusted with jewels or gilded. Many were purported to have mystical or magical properties. Many were weapons. The fan would have been only one of many for Lord Fujishima. Temari felt no guilt over keeping it even when there were sometimes gentle hints about its prominent place among his heirlooms. After a time, even he could recognize an implacable female when faced with one.

And so the evening passed more enjoyably than they'd feared that morning. Everyone retired quite pleased with the results of the mission.

* * *

When they brought Mr. Shibuya into the village, they were confronted by the mayor, the constable, and the self-proclaimed members of the village council they hadn't met, all looking disapproving and affronted.

"Where have you been?" Mayor Kobayashi asked.

"We held back dinner for hours," reproved the restaurant owner whose name they'd never learned.

"Everyone was most disappointed," Kazuhiko Endoh, the innkeeper told them.

"I expected that kind of rude behavior from ninja," Constable Hayama announced with ill-concealed satisfaction that his expectations had been met.

Shikamaru held up his hands to quell the grumblings to a dull drone. "We had some unexpected success late yesterday evening. We couldn't get back to you in time for dinner."

"What happened?" demanded several voices.

"I'd like to introduce you to the person responsible for your mysterious death. Mr. Shibuya," Shikamaru brought him forward, and told the story they'd decided on.

Once the news of their discovery and solution to the mystery of the dead disfigured man was heard, no one could reasonably chastise them over the village banquet they'd missed. They were too relieved at the news. The story filtered around the village even while they told it, and a crowd gathered around them.

There was some discussion of a trial and jail time, until Mr. Shibuya announced that he would pay the ninja fees, their room and board as well as funeral expenses for the dead man. After that the murmurs of justice died down, and everyone declared themselves satisfied that the story he told was quite reasonable. The culprit wasn't really one of their own since he technically lived outside the village. The dead man had nothing to do with their mine. And they weren't out the expenses of the investigation. They could all go about their business not in the least worried that they'd be targeted in the future by an unknown assailant. Mr. Shibuya did right to protect himself and his mine. He'd probably saved the village from a similar robbery attempt. The solution couldn't have been more convenient for them.

Now that their mission was completed, the villagers seemed eager to see the ninja on their way, but not as eager as Team Shikamaru was to be gone. Good-byes were effected swiftly. Even the constable only said "Good riddance" under his breath before walking off with the mayor.

It was still early morning, so they had no problem leaving almost immediately. First they went back to their rooms, to make a check to be certain they'd left nothing behind. Mr. Shibuya had already given both ninja groups their pay in gold, before settling with the innkeeper and taking off to the south and his cabin.

"Shikamaru, could I see you a minute in private before we leave?" Temari asked and beckoned him into her room.

Puzzled, he followed her giving orders to his team to wait at the inn entrance for him when they were ready. Once he'd closed her door behind him, she grabbed him by the shirt pulling him towards her, and planted a liplock on him so fast, he didn't even see it coming. But his surprise gave way to cooperation very quickly. It wasn't like he'd never kissed a girl before, but he'd never been met with such enthusiasm. Kissing took on a far more interesting prospect when the girl initiated and actively participated in the activity. He felt his usual lethargy disappear completely. Maybe that's what had been missing in his earlier romantic forays—a girl who was as into him as he was into her.

When they came up for air, he said huskily, "Temari, I never figured you for a tease. We don't have time for this. I've got three impatient team mates waiting for me out front. What are you up to?"

She pouted and kissed him again lightly. "I'm not teasing you. I'm giving you a sample of coming attractions. Next time I expect to be the pouncee not the pouncer."

He slid his hands around her waist, and held her against him. He wouldn't risk a kiss. He might not be able to stop with one more kiss. He already felt a little light headed. The girl really knew how to kiss. "I'm looking forward to it. When will that be?"

She rested her head on his shoulder and put her arms around him. He was almost a head taller than she was. "Soon. I think. A few weeks at best. A few months at most."

He rested his chin on her hair. "How can that be? The chûnin exams don't come up again for another year."

"You'll see. Let me retain a few mysteries."

"Believe me, sweetheart, you always will."

She raised her head, drew back and placed her hands over his gently removing his hands from her waist. "Shikamaru, that's one of the sweetest things you've ever said to me," she sighed. "I guess we'd better go before everyone begins to wonder where we are. Good thing I don't wear lipstick on missions or we'd both need some cleaning up."

"You don't need make-up. You're beautiful just the way you are," he said sincerely. He didn't know when he'd started to find her so attractive, but he was struck by just how much he enjoyed looking at her. She drew his eye with every toss of her head, flutter of her eyelashes or swivel of her hips. She had him completely fascinated, and he didn't mind it one bit.

Her smile was almost shy. "I don't know why I ever thought you needed practice flirting. You've become a master in no time."

"I'm not flirting. I'm serious."

"I know. That's what makes it even more intriguing. I can't wait to experience it on a more regular basis. Who would ever have thought that you and I could be interested in one another?" She shook her head in wonder.

"I've always been interested. I just never thought you'd be." He wasn't ready to put a stronger name to his feelings. They were too new.

"Me, too. Well, it won't be long, and we'll see if there's something real to our mutual interest. We'd better go." She took his hand and tugged him to the door.

He was suddenly reluctant to leave. Despite her promises, he didn't know when he'd see Temari again, and he realized he wanted to see her—often. Her teasing pursuit of him was incredibly attractive. On his own, he might never have approached her. He would have thought it a forlorn hope. That was his greatest failing—not trying for something when the odds were against him. Some would say his ability to calculate the odds and quit while he was ahead required high level intelligence. But he'd seen others like Naruto strive against overwhelming odds and win despite all evidence to the contrary. Unless forced to by circumstances, he almost never took on a losing fight. He was beginning to realize that his intelligence might be as much of a handicap as a help.

"Temari," he said quietly and stopped her before she opened the door.

He took her chin in his hand and this time gave her a quick, hard kiss. "Make it soon," he murmured against her mouth.

"Ummm. I will," she promised breathlessly, and opened the door.

She led the way out of her room, and they walked slowly out to the entrance to where their team mates were waiting. They walked side by side, and anyone scrutinizing them closely would have noticed that they walked closer together than mere acquaintances would. But no one was paying that much attention. The others were impatiently waiting to get on the road.

They said their good-byes quickly, and the teams headed off in opposite directions.

Shikamaru and Choji took the lead. Naruto and Hinata trailed behind.

Naruto slowed his walk waiting for the other two to get out of ear shot, before addressing Hinata. He wasn't in the least bit curious about Shikamaru and Temari's last meeting. If he needed to know, he'd be told. He had his own concerns to deal with.

"You're still feeling alright, Hinata?" She looked fine—better than fine. She didn't appear to be suffering any ill effects from being drugged all yesterday.

"Yes, thank you. I feel very good. All that sleep yesterday was most beneficial."

"I'm glad. Really glad. If anything had happened to you—"

She put a hand on his arm not allowing him to complete his sentence. She didn't want to see him angry again. "Let's not think about that, Naruto. Everything worked out most satisfactorily. Lord Fujishima was really a nice old man despite what happened."

He shrugged. "Yeah, maybe. Shikamaru believed him, so I guess I should, too. But I find it hard to think of him as nice."

She had a sudden thought, and changed the subject. "Oh, Naruto, I forgot to tell you! You'll never believe what I found out!"

"What?" He smiled indulgently at her excited voice. He was ready to drop the subject if that was her wish.

"Do you remember the name Fujishima from before this mission?"

He scratched his head. "Sorta. It sounded familiar when I first heard it, but I can't remember why."

"Well, do you remember that shrine we stayed at when I had the mission to bring you home from the city?"

He grinned. "How could I forget a single second of that mission? I'd never seen you dressed up before. You looked beautiful in that red dress."

She blushed. "That wasn't the part of the mission I want you to remember."

"Why not? That's the one part I can't forget. I hope you still have that dress. I'm looking forward to seeing you wear it again."

She continued to blush. "Yes, I still have it. It weathered the mission with only a few wrinkles. But you do remember the shrine?" she persisted.

"Yeah, sure. What about it? I slept peacefully most of the time we were there."

"Remember, I told you about the dream I had about the priestess, Tsubaki? She was in love with a warrior named Uryu Fujishima?"

"Hey! Yeah! That's where I head the name before. So, is he related to old man Fujishima? Is that what you found out?"

She nodded her head. "I think so. He had a great uncle of the same name who lost his legs in the war. From what Lord Fujishima told me, he must have died close to the same time that Tsubaki died. It can't be a coincidence. It must be the same person."

"So what are you going to do with that information?"

"I'd like to return to the shrine. I want to tell Tsubaki what happened to the man she loved—that he didn't deliberately desert her. I think her spirit would find some rest if she knew." During this mission until she'd heard the name Fujishima, she hadn't given any thought to Tsubaki and the promise she'd made to discover what happened to her lover. She'd completely forgotten that Tsubaki had said Uryu Fujishima had come from a mountain village. What luck that it had all come together so easily. She almost felt guilty that she hadn't thought to pursue the matter before.

"Okay. Let's do it," he agreed.

She looked at him in pleased surprise. "You'll come with me?"

"Of course. Maybe this time, she'll let me actually meet her and not sleep through it all."

She clapped her hands together. "That's wonderful. Thank you, Naruto."

"Just so you know—that trip won't count."

Her brow furrowed. She looked at him in askance. "Won't count? What do you mean?"

"A trip to the shrine, won't count as our date," he explained determinedly. This was the topic he'd really wanted to bring up, so he thought this a nice segue. "When we get back to Konoha we're going to have a real date? Remember? You promised."

She smiled happily. "I know I did. And I never go back on my word. That's my ninja way."

He grinned back. "Good. We'll go out the day after we get back. I'll make sure Granny Tsuande doesn't assign us to another mission for a few days."

"Okay," she said agreeably.

A date with Naruto.

Her impossible dream, incredible fantasy and cherished wish come true. She could hardly believe it. Where would they go? What would they do? She didn't care. Anywhere with Naruto would be wonderful.

She began walking a little faster. They needed to get home as quickly as possible.

A date with Naruto.

She'd wear her red dress, of course. He'd said she'd looked beautiful. She wanted to look beautiful for him.

Would he kiss her again? Oh, my! She blushed just thinking about it.

A date with Naruto.

She couldn't wait.

* * *

The End part TWO.

The story continues in PART THREE tentatively titled:

"The courtship of Naruto Uzumaki."


End file.
